Courtesy of ESPN
Two household names, Los Angeles Dodger Shohei Ohtani and New York Yankee Aaron Judge, arguably two of the best players in Major League Baseball today, have not made it to the World Series until now. The two began their face-to-face matchup in the best-of-seven game series on Friday.
Shohei Ohtani
Courtesy of Wally Skalij, Los Angeles Times
Shohei Ohtani, pitcher and designated hitter has had an amazing career so far. The word “amazing” does not even do him justice, he is an incredible and exciting player to watch. Ohtani began his career with the Los Angeles Angels in 2017 when they signed him to a minor league contract, later making his major league debut in 2018.
Ohtani became a free agent following the 2023 season. Fans were anxiously awaiting to find out where he would go, with alleged offers from the Chicago Cubs and the San Francisco Giants, including the Yankees themselves.
After weeks of rumors circulated the internet, Ohtani signed a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Dodgers to be paid out over the next 20 years. This is the most money any MLB player has been signed for since Mike Trout’s 10-year contract to the Angels for $426.5 million signed in 2019.
Ohtani has had an especially amazing season this year. Despite being unable to pitch this season after Tommy John Surgery last September,, he has definitely made his mark on the Dodgers. During the regular season, Ohtani had a batting average of .310, 54 home runs, 130 runs batted in, and 59 stolen bases. So far during the postseason he has had an additional three home runs and 10 RBIs.
In late August against the Tampa Bay Rays, Ohtani joined the 40/40 club, with 40 home runs, and 40 stolen bases. The home run was a walk-off grand slam. Just about a month later against the Miami Marlins, he became the first MLB player to have a 50/50 season.
In addition to having an incredible season, Ohtani has great overall career stats. In just over 3,000 at-bats, he has hit 225 home runs and 567 RBIs. He is a four-time all-star, three times for the American League and once in the National League. Ohtani has won the Silver Slugger Award twice and was the AL MVP in 2021 and 2023. In 2018, he was the AL Rookies of the Year.
Aaron Judge
Courtesy of the New York Yankees via Twitter
Aaron Judge has had a record-breaking career. It is so fun to watch Judge play, sometimes it seems as if he is not even human. He was a first-round draft pick for the Yankees in 2013 and subsequently made his MLB debut in Aug. 2016. His first major league at-bat was a home run, ever since that moment, fans have adored Judge.
In Nov. 2022, Judge was a free agent. After exploring his options, he decided to stay in New York and signed a nine-year, $360 million contract.
This season Judge has played center field and has been the Yankees’ designated hitter a few times. One of the most exciting parts of his season was in mid-August against the Chicago White Sox, where Judge hit his 300th career home run. This made him the fastest player to hit 300 home runs in the amount of at-bats and games played.
Ralph Kiner was the player to beat as the fastest to reach 300 home runs. Judge beat the record by 132 games. In the 2022 season, Judge hit 62 home runs, which broke Roger Maris’ previous record of 61 home runs in a single season for the American League.
The Match-Up
This World Series features two of the biggest teams in baseball with some of sports biggest names going head-to-head for the championship. There are 21 current and former all-stars across both teams rosters, with five former Most Valuable Players adding an extra flare to the field.
Edited by Brittany Snow
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