National League MVP: Phillies slugger Bryce Harper
| Ohtani Shohei [게티이미지] |
[헤럴드경제=조범자 기자] There was no change. Shohei Ohtani (27, Los Angeles Angels), a ‘baseball genius’ with a double job, unanimously became the MVP of this year’s MLB American League. The National League MVP went to slugger Bryce Harper (29, Philadelphia Phillies).
As a result of the BBWAA voting, released by the MLB Network on the 19th (Korean time), Ohtani received all 30 first-place votes and unanimously enjoyed the honor of being the American League MVP.
Ohtani became the 11th player in history to receive a unanimous first place vote in the American League MVP voting, and became the second Japanese big leaguer to win the MVP award after Ichiro Suzuki in 2001. He also set the record for being the first designated hitter to receive the MVP and the 23rd pitcher.
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| Ohtani Shohei [게티이미지] |
Ohtani reached the peak of his double career this year, creating a craze for the ‘double dow’ in MLB.
As a pitcher, he started in 23 games, pitched 130⅓ innings, posted a 9-2, a 3.18 ERA, and hit 46 home runs at bat, ranking third in the league and stealing 25 bases. In praise for being a character that can only be seen in cartoons, he swept the Player of the Year, MLB Commissioner’s Special Award, and Baseball America’s Player of the Year Award.
Harper was named National League MVP for the second time in six years, following his 2015 with the Washington Nationals. This season, he had a batting average of 0.309, 84 RBIs from 35 home runs, and his slugging percentage (0.615) was the highest in the league.
