The All-MLB Team is an annual Major League Baseball (MLB) honor bestowed upon the best players across both leagues at each position during the season. Selections to the first and second teams are determined by a fan vote and a panel consisting of media members, former players, and baseball officials. The honor was established in 2019 .
121-587: The career leader in selections is Shohei Ohtani , who has been named an All-MLB player seven times. Ohtani is also the only player to be named to both teams in the same season (as a designated hitter and starting pitcher respectively), accomplished in 2021 and 2022 , and is the only player to be named to the first team twice in the same season, in 2023 . The roster of each team consists of one catcher , four infielders (one for each position), three outfielders regardless of position, one designated hitter , five starting pitchers , and two relief pitchers . Before
242-418: A "baseball war" during 1901 and 1902 before agreeing to a "peace pact" that recognized each other as legitimate "major leagues". As part of this agreement, the leagues agreed to respect player contracts, establish rules about relationships with minor league clubs, and allow their champions to meet in a " World Series " to decide the overall professional baseball championship. National League teams have won 51 of
363-596: A 10-year, $ 700 million contract with the Dodgers, the largest contract in professional sports history . Unable to pitch in 2024 while recovering from a second elbow injury, Ohtani played as a DH for the Dodgers. He became the first player in MLB history to record 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a season and was unanimously named the 2024 National League MVP. He won the 2024 World Series in his first MLB postseason appearance. Internationally, Ohtani represents Japan . At
484-543: A 10–4 record and a 1.86 ERA on the mound with 174 strikeouts in 140 innings. He tied for 8th in the PL in wins and was third in strikeouts (behind Norimoto and Kodai Senga ). He led Nippon Ham to the 2016 Japan Series , but lost the opener to the Hiroshima Carp; he struck out 11 in 6 innings but allowed 3 runs, two on a homer by Brad Eldred and one on a steal of home by Seiya Suzuki . Down 2 games to 0, he came up big as
605-568: A 160 km/h (99 mph) fastball as an 18-year-old high school pitcher, which at the time, had set a Japanese high school baseball record until it was surpassed by Rōki Sasaki 's 163 km/h (101 mph) fastball in 2018. Ohtani threw the pitch in the Japanese national high school baseball championship tournament, commonly called Summer Koshien . In the 2012 18U Baseball World Championship , Ohtani had an 0–1 win–loss record with 16 strikeouts , eight walks , five hits, five runs, and
726-427: A 397-foot three-run homer against Josh Tomlin . On April 6, he hit his third home run in three days, becoming the first Angels rookie to do so. In only his second start on the mound on April 8, Ohtani took a perfect game through 6⅓ innings before allowing a hit. Overall, Ohtani pitched seven scoreless innings while striking out 12. On June 8, he was placed on the injured list for the first time in his MLB career due to
847-676: A 4.35 earned run average (ERA) in 10 + 1 ⁄ 3 innings pitched. Ohtani expressed a desire to move directly to the major leagues after high school and received interest from numerous teams including the Texas Rangers , Boston Red Sox , New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers . On October 21, 2012, he announced that he would pursue a career in Major League Baseball rather than turn professional in Japan. The Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters decided to draft him in
968-514: A Grade 2 UCL sprain in his right elbow. He received platelet-rich plasma and stem-cell injections to treat the injury. Ohtani was activated from the injured list as a hitter on July 2 and on August 3, hit two home runs against the Cleveland Indians , marking his first career multiple-home run game and his first two home runs in a road game. After not pitching for 11 weeks, Angels manager Mike Scioscia announced that Ohtani would start
1089-533: A September 7 game against the Orix Buffaloes , he homered to straightaway center at Kyocera Dome to become the first Japanese player to reach double digits in both home runs and wins. He tossed a 1–0 shutout against Orix on September 13 and became the first pitcher out of high school to record a 1–0 shutout victory within his first two years for the Fighters since Toshiaki Moriyasu in 1967. He also became
1210-601: A career-high four walks on September 22 and three walks on September 23, against the Houston Astros , followed by four more walks on September 24 and two walks on September 25 against the Seattle Mariners. His 11 walks drawn in the three-game span also tied the MLB record set by Harper in 2016. On September 26, Ohtani reached the 150-strikeout milestone against the Seattle Mariners and finished
1331-567: A career-low ERA of 1.86. He had a 10–4 record, struck out 174 batters in 140 innings with 4 complete games and one shutout. He also won the Best Nine award as a pitcher and won the Pacific League MVP. He got nearly double as many votes as any other pitcher for the PL for the 2016 NPB All-Star Game; he had 300,025 while #2 Shota Takeda had 158,008. He could not pitch in the event due to a blister on his finger but wound up starring as
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#17327835733651452-474: A changeup. Furthermore, in spring training, the Angels and Ohtani agreed to allow him to play without limitations or restrictions and drop the "Ohtani Rules", a plan the Angels mirrored from Ohtani's schedule in Japan and had implemented since his 2018 rookie season that restricted his usage to a schedule of pitching once a week and hitting only three to four times between starts. On February 8, Ohtani agreed to
1573-663: A condition of the sale of the Astros to Jim Crane in November 2011, the team agreed to move to the American League effective with the 2013 season. In 2023, National League teams played 46 regular season interleague games against all 15 American League teams, 23 at home and 23 on the road. As of the end of the 2024 season, the Dodgers have won the most NL pennants, with 25. Representing the National League against
1694-567: A designated hitter (DH). In Game 1, he batted for DH Yuya Hasegawa and lined out in the 8th against Scott Mathieson . Starting at DH and hitting 5th in Game 2, he homered off Shoichi Ino in the 5th to start the PL comeback from a 3–0 deficit. He singled against Ryo Akiyoshi in the 7th and scored on a hit by Kenta Imamiya for a 4–3 lead. Coming up with a 5–4 deficit in the 8th, he singled off Shinji Tajima to bring in Shogo Akiyama with
1815-588: A few forkballs in the mid-140s, including one he threw perfectly in the second inning to strike out Tampa Bay Rays star Ben Zobrist . In December, he became the second player out of high school in NPB history to reach 100M yen in salary in his third year, after Daisuke Matsuzaka in 2001. His new contract more than tripled his previous salary estimated at 30M yen. 2015 marked Ohtani's third professional season (and second full season). Though his offensive production declined somewhat (five home runs), his performance on
1936-521: A game as a pitcher, bat in the heart of the order (3rd through 5th), and get a hit and a run batted in (RBI) in that game. He missed time during the year with a right ankle sprain and right cheekbone fracture. For the season, he was 3–0 with a 4.23 ERA, 33 walks, and 46 strikeouts in 61 + 2 ⁄ 3 innings. and hit .238/.284/.376 in 204 plate appearances . He had seven outfield assists to one error. His 8 hit batsmen tied Manabu Mima , Tadashi Settsu , Hideaki Wakui and Ryoma Nogami for 5th in
2057-523: A hit until Keun-woo Jeong singled in the seventh inning and had the most whiffs in a game for the first Premier 12 ever. Norimoto relieved with a 3–0 lead but he and two other relievers combined to allow four in the 9th to blow it as Japan fell in a shocking defeat. He tied for the event lead in ERA and led in strikeouts while allowing the lowest average by a starting pitcher. He was named the All-Star SP for
2178-482: A more "traditional" or "pure" league, the National League did not adopt the designated hitter rule until the shortened 2020 season . Only the American League previously adopted the rule in 1973. In theory, this meant that the role of the manager was greater in the National League than in the American League, because the NL manager must take offense into account when making pitching substitutions and vice versa. However, this
2299-518: A new rule that allows for a pitcher in the batting order to remain in the game as a designated hitter after they are pulled from the pitching mound, colloquially dubbed the " Ohtani rule ". The Angels named him as the Opening Day starting pitcher and he pitched 4 + 2 ⁄ 3 innings against the Houston Astros , allowing one earned run and one walk while striking out nine. He became the first player in MLB history to start Opening Day as both
2420-408: A no-decision. He finished the season 15–5 with a 2.24 ERA, 196 strikeouts, and only 100 hits in 160 + 2 ⁄ 3 innings. He led the PL in ERA (.14 over Nishi), tied Wakui for the most wins, and was second in strikeouts (19 behind Norimoto, though he threw 34 fewer innings). He rarely played the field but did see some action at DH, hitting .202/.252/.376 with five home runs in 109 at-bats. He made
2541-493: A pitcher and outfielder, utilizing his strong throwing arm as well as his impressive batting skills. As a hitter, he batted .274, with 28 extra-base hits (including 10 home runs), 31 RBIs, and a .842 on-base plus slugging percentage in 212 at-bats. As a pitcher, he was 11–4 with a 2.61 ERA in 24 starts and struck out 179 (third in NPB) in 155.1 innings. His 10.4 K/9 was the best in the league and opponents hit just .223 against him. In
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#17327835733652662-455: A pitcher. He was the second Nippon Pro Baseball rookie drafted out of high school the previous year to be used as both a pitcher and position player, following Kikuo Tokunaga in 1951; Ohtani was the first to start in both roles. He was the first NPB pitcher since Takao Kajimoto in 1963 to bat 3rd, 4th, or 5th and the first rookie hurler to do so since Junzo Sekine in 1950. He was the second player, following Osamu Takechi (also 1950), to start
2783-615: A postseason championship—the World Series . Major League Baseball narrowly averted radical reorganization in November 1920. Dissatisfied with American League President and National Baseball Commission head Ban Johnson , NL owners dissolved the league on November 8 during heated talks on MLB reorganization in the wake of the Black Sox Scandal . Simultaneously, three AL teams also hostile to Johnson ( Boston Red Sox , Chicago White Sox , and New York Yankees ) withdrew from
2904-417: A single season to finish with the second-most home runs in a season in Angels history at 46, trailing only Troy Glaus ' 47 home runs in 2000. For the year, Ohtani finished his pitching campaign by making 23 starts on the mound, going 9–2 with a 3.18 ERA, 156 strikeouts, 1.09 WHIP, and 44 walks in 130 1/3 innings. On the hitting side, Ohtani finished with an American League-leading 20 intentional walks, which
3025-483: A two-year $ 8.5 million contract with the Angels, avoiding arbitration . On June 23, he hit for himself as a pitcher and the second batter in the lineup with designated hitter rules in place, making it the first time in MLB history that an American League team chose not to use a DH while a National League team used one. On July 7, he hit his 32nd home run of the year, a solo shot off of Boston Red Sox starter Eduardo Rodríguez , passing Hideki Matsui 's mark in 2004, for
3146-660: A version of the World Series seven times during their ten-year coexistence. These contests were less organized than the modern Series, lasting as few as three games and as many as fifteen, with two Series (1885 and 1890) ending in disputed ties. The NL won four times and the AA only once, in 1886. Starting with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1887, the National League began to raid the American Association for franchises to replace NL teams that folded. This undercut
3267-758: Is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher and designated hitter (DH) for the Los Angeles Dodgers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Nicknamed " Shotime ", he has previously played in MLB for the Los Angeles Angels and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters . Because of his elite contributions as a hitter and as a pitcher, a rarity as a two-way player , Ohtani's prime seasons have been considered among
3388-449: Is called the "Junior Circuit". Both leagues currently have 15 teams. The National League survived competition from various other professional baseball leagues during the late 19th century. Most did not last for more than a few seasons, with a handful of teams joining the NL once their leagues folded. The American League declared itself a second major league in 1901, and the AL and NL engaged in
3509-562: The 2012 NPB Draft nevertheless, despite knowing that there was a high likelihood he would not play for them. After an exclusive negotiating window between him and the Fighters, Ohtani announced that he would sign with the Fighters and spend some years in Japan before a possible MLB move. Hokkaido said it would allow Ohtani to serve as a pitcher and position player; the Los Angeles Dodgers, who had become Ohtani's top-choice MLB team, were not prepared to let him play both ways. He
3630-412: The 2016 Japan Series and had cost him a chance to play in the 2017 World Baseball Classic in addition to restricting his playing time during the season. On November 21, 2017, MLB and NPB came to a posting agreement for Ohtani. Because he was under 25 years old, Ohtani was subjected to international signing rules. This capped his bonus at $ 3.557 million and limited him to a rookie salary scale, while
3751-708: The 2023 World Baseball Classic , he won the MVP Award for the tournament following Japan's victory over the United States . The 2023 final was one of the most-watched baseball games in history, culminating with Ohtani striking out Angels teammate and USA captain Mike Trout on a full count , securing a 3–2 win and Japan's third title. Ohtani was born to Kayoko and Toru Ohtani in Mizusawa (now part of Ōshū ), Iwate , Japan, on July 5, 1994. His mother Kayoko
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3872-656: The Edgar Martínez Outstanding Designated Hitter Award . Ohtani was also awarded the Silver Slugger Award for being the best offensive player at the designated hitter position in the American League, and was named to Time 100 's list of most influential people of 2021, which culminated to many end-of-the-season-accolades. He was named Associated Press AP Athlete of the Year , Sporting News Athlete of
3993-682: The Houston Astros three years later. In 1969, the league added the San Diego Padres and the Montreal Expos (now the Washington Nationals ), becoming a 12-team league for the first time since 1899. In 1969, as a result of its expansion to 12 teams, the National League—which for its first 93 years had competed equally in a single grouping—was reorganized into two divisions of six teams (respectively named
4114-833: The National League East and West , although geographically it was more like North and South), with the division champions meeting in the National League Championship Series (an additional round of postseason competition) for the right to advance to the World Series. In 1993 the league expanded to 14 teams, adding the Colorado Rockies and the Florida Marlins (which became the Miami Marlins shortly after
4235-542: The Prime Minister of Japan in recognition of his accomplishments, but Ohtani rejected it, saying it was "still too early" for such an award. On December 22, The Sporting News released the article "The 50 greatest seasons in sports history, ranked". In it, Ohtani's 2021 season was ranked No.1, topping great seasons by athletes such as Babe Ruth , Michael Jordan , Tom Brady , Wayne Gretzky , and Lionel Messi . On March 22, 2022, Major League Baseball introduced
4356-611: The United States and Canada , and the world's oldest extant professional team sports league. Founded on February 2, 1876, to replace the National Association of Professional Base Ball Players (NAPBBP) of 1871–1875 (often called simply the "National Association"), the NL is sometimes called the Senior Circuit , in contrast to MLB's other league, the American League , which was founded 25 years later and
4477-402: The 119 World Series championships contested from 1903 to 2023. For decades, Major League baseball clubs only played teams from their own league during the regular season and most of the playoffs, with only their champions facing off in the World Series. This separation gradually caused the leagues to develop slightly different strategies and styles of play. The National League was long considered
4598-533: The 16th recipient of the Commissioner's Historic Achievement Award , awarded by Commissioner Rob Manfred , who formally recognized Ohtani's 2021 season as "historically significant" and "unprecedented", calling it "so special that it was important to recognize the historic achievement that took place in 2021 with an award just about 2021." Ohtani was offered Japan's national honor, the People's Honour Award , by
4719-502: The 1st inning. With the count 0–1, Ohtani threw a fastball that registered 162 km/h (101 mph) on the stadium radar gun and shattered Ginji's bat in half. He also hit 162 km/h twice against the second hitter, Aoi Enomoto . Of the 15 pitches he threw in the first inning, eight were in the 160s; 99s in MPH. During the postseason, Ohtani was chosen to become a member of the national team , dubbed Samurai Japan , and participated in
4840-485: The 2013 Pacific League. Ohtani received 4 of the 233 votes for the 2013 Nippon Professional Baseball Rookie of the Year Award (Pacific League), tying Tatsuya Sato for a distant second behind Takahiro Norimoto . During his five-year tenure with the Fighters, Ohtani opted to live in the team's provided dormitories, while his parents oversaw his finances. Throughout the entire season, Ohtani performed double-duty as
4961-613: The 2022 season, the designated hitter was only used in the American League (as well as interleague games hosted by American League teams), except during the COVID-19 -affected 2020 season. The following players have been selected for an All-MLB Team three or more times. Updated as of the conclusion of the 2024 Major League Baseball season . Shohei Ohtani This is an accepted version of this page Shohei Ohtani ( Japanese : 大谷 翔平 , Hepburn : Ōtani Shōhei , pronounced [oːtaɲi ɕoːheː] ; born July 5, 1994)
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5082-459: The AL and joined the eight NL teams in forming a new National League; the 12th team would be whichever of the remaining five AL teams loyal to Johnson first chose to join; if none did so an expansion team would have been placed in Detroit , by far the largest one-team city at that time. Four days later, on November 12, both sides met (without Johnson) and agreed to restore the two leagues and replace
5203-524: The All-Star Game, or in the World Series. Beginning in 1997, however, interleague games have been played during the regular season and count in the standings. Prior to the early 2020s – before the universal designated hitter rule was started in both leagues – as part of the agreement instituting interleague play, the DH rule was used only in games where the American League team was the home team. In 1999,
5324-478: The American Association. After the 1891 season, the AA disbanded and merged with the NL, which became known legally for the next decade as the "National League and American Association". The teams now known as the Cincinnati Reds , Los Angeles Dodgers (originally Brooklyn) and Pittsburgh Pirates (as well as the now-defunct Cleveland Spiders ) had already switched from the AA to the NL prior to 1892. With
5445-686: The American League under the auspices of Major League Baseball, which now operates much like other North American professional sports leagues, albeit with two "leagues" instead of "conferences". By 1875, the National Association of Professional Ball Players (NAPBBP, often referred to as the "National Association"), founded four years earlier, was suffering from a lack of strong authority over clubs, unsupervised scheduling, unstable membership of cities, dominance by one team (the Boston Red Stockings ), and an extremely low entry fee ($ 10) that gave clubs no incentive to abide by league rules when it
5566-586: The American League, the Cardinals have won the most World Series (11) followed by the Giants and Dodgers (8), Pirates (5), and Reds (5). St. Louis also holds the distinction of being the only AA club to defeat an NL club in the 19th-century version of the World Series, having done so against their now-division rival Cubs. The eight charter teams were the following: The eight-team lineup established in 1900 remained unchanged through 1952. All franchises are still in
5687-418: The Angels, soon winning the 2018 American League (AL) Rookie of the Year Award . Following an injury-plagued 2019 and 2020, Ohtani hit 46 home runs and struck out 156 batters en route to winning his first AL Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) in 2021, a statistically unprecedented two-way season that saw him bestowed with the Commissioner's Historic Achievement Award . In 2022, he became the first player in
5808-547: The Best Nine as the PL's top hurler. He finished third in MVP voting again, placing behind Yanagita and Shogo Akiyama for the 2015 Pacific League MVP. Ohtani placed third in MVP voting (first among pitchers) and was one of three candidates considered for the 2015 Sawamura Award, given annually to the top pitcher in either league. Ohtani led the league in wins and winning percentage with a 15–5 record in just 22 starts, and his 2.24 ERA, five complete games, and three shutouts were also
5929-459: The Central had one more team). A third postseason round was added at the same time: the three division champions plus a wild card team (the team with the best record among those finishing in second place) now advance to the preliminary National League Division Series . Due to a players' strike, however, the postseason was not actually held in 1994. Before the 1998 season, the American League and
6050-521: The DH in Game 3, getting three hits, a run, and an RBI. In the bottom of the 10th, he singled off Daichi Osera score Nishikawa with the winner; Nippon Ham would take the next three games to win their second Japan Series title. Teammate Brandon Laird would win the Series MVP. Ohtani hit .375/.412/.625 with four doubles, doing more on offense than on the mound for the Series. He made the Best Nine as
6171-634: The NAPBBP because Hulbert had signed them to his club using what were considered questionable means. Hulbert had a great vested interest in creating his own league, and after recruiting St. Louis privately, four western clubs met in Louisville, Kentucky , in January 1876. With Hulbert speaking for the five later in New York City on February 2, 1876, the National League of Professional Base Ball Clubs
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#17327835733656292-490: The NL did not have teams, offered Sunday games and alcoholic beverages in locales where permitted, and sold cheaper tickets everywhere (25 cents versus the NL's standard 50 cents, a hefty sum for many in 1882). The NL struck back by establishing new clubs in 1883 in AA cities Philadelphia (later called "Phillies") and New York (the team that would become the Giants). The National League and the American Association participated in
6413-467: The NL to modify its labor practices, including a salary cap and a reserve clause that bound players to their teams indefinitely. The NL suffered many defections of star players to the Players' League, but the P.L. collapsed after one season. The Brooklyn, Chicago, Pittsburgh, and New York franchises of the NL absorbed their Players' League counterparts. The labor strike of 1890 hastened the downfall of
6534-516: The NL. By 1903, the upstart AL had placed new teams in the National League cities of Boston , Chicago, New York, Philadelphia , and St. Louis , as well as the "abandoned" NL cities Cleveland and Washington (and, temporarily, Baltimore). Only the Cincinnati Reds and Pittsburgh Pirates had no AL team in their markets. The AL among other things enforced a strict conduct policy among its players. The National League at first refused to recognize
6655-481: The National League each added a fifteenth team. Because of the odd number of teams, only seven games could possibly be scheduled in each league on any given day. Thus, one team in each league would have to be idle on any given day. This would have made it difficult for scheduling, in terms of travel days and the need to end the season before October. In order for MLB officials to continue primarily intraleague play, both leagues would need to carry an even number of teams, so
6776-644: The Suzuki All-Star Series, a five-game friendly competition with a squad of major leaguers. In Game 1, he pitched one shutout inning in relief, retiring three consecutive batters. He started Game 5 at the Sapporo Dome and, although his team ultimately lost (3–1), he wasn't charged with an earned run (he gave up two unearned), and of the 12 outs he recorded in four innings, he got seven via strikeout. He threw mostly fastballs, even clocked one at 160 km/h (99 mph), occasional curveballs, and
6897-608: The West Coast of the U.S. for the first time. The NL remained an eight-team league for over 60 years. (For the eight teams, see Expansion (1887–1899) above, and "Classic Eight" below.) In 1962—facing competition from the proposed Continental League and confronted by the American League 's unilateral expansion in 1961—the NL expanded by adding the New York Mets and the Houston Colt .45s. The "Colts" were renamed
7018-430: The Year , Baseball Digest Player of the Year and Baseball America Major League Player of the Year . From his MLB peers he was given Sporting News Player of the Year Award , Players Choice Player of the Year Award , and Players Choice American League Outstanding Player Award . He was also named as both the team's Los Angeles Angels Player of the Year of 2021 and the team's Nick Adenhart Pitcher of
7139-466: The Year Award , as voted by his teammates. Additionally, Ohtani's 2021 season was recognized for two Guinness World Records titles: (1) the first MLB player to achieve 100+ innings and record 100+ strikeouts as a pitcher, and 100+ RBIs, hits and runs as a batter in a single season and (2) the first player to start the MLB All-Star Game as a pitcher and a designated hitter. He also became
7260-608: The behavior of teammates that he quit playing in 1891 to become one of America's most famous evangelical Christian preachers. Most fans appear to have felt the same way, because attendance at games was plummeting by 1900. After eight seasons as a 12-team league, the NL contracted back to eight teams for the 1900 season, eliminating its teams in Baltimore , Cleveland , Louisville (which has never had another major league team since), and Washington . This provided an opportunity for competition. Three of those cities received franchises in
7381-458: The best in the league. All these stats were career bests, as were his 196 strikeouts, 0.909 WHIP, and 11 strikeouts per nine innings. Ohtani was dominant for the Japanese national team in the 2015 Premier 12. He hit 100 mph while blowing away eventual champion South Korea (10 K, 2 H, 2 BB, 0 R in 6 IP) before Norimoto was relieved. Facing South Korea again in the semifinals, he was even sharper (11 K, 0 BB, 1 HB, 1 H in 7 IP). He did not give up
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#17327835733657502-449: The clubs' defiance by expelling them, an act which not only shocked baseball followers (New York and Philadelphia were the two most populous cities in the league) and the then sports world, but made it clear to clubs that league scheduling commitments, a cornerstone of competitive integrity, were not to be ignored. The National League operated with only six clubs during 1877 and 1878. Over the next several years, various teams joined and left
7623-780: The decision was made to move one club from the AL Central to the NL Central. Eventually, Milwaukee agreed (after Kansas City declined) to change leagues; the National League now had 16 teams, the American League 14 with the switch. Beginning with the 2013 season, the Houston Astros moved from the National League Central to the American League West, which now gave both leagues three divisions of five teams each. Often characterized as being
7744-421: The designated hitter rule in 2022 , and the expansion of interleague play to 46 games beginning in 2023 , has further blurred the lines between leagues. Though both leagues agreed to be jointly governed by a commissioner in 1920, they remained separate legal and business entities with their own president and management. This was the case until after the 1999 season, when the National League legally merged with
7865-593: The end of July. And for the second straight month, Ohtani also earned his second American League Player of the Month Award, becoming the first back-to-back Player of the Month Award winner in either league since Chase Headley in August and September 2012, and the first in the AL since Josh Hamilton in 2012. For July, he produced nine home runs, 19 RBIs, 16 walks, and a .282/.396/.671 slash line in 23 games at
7986-702: The end of Ohtani's impressive 2018 MLB regular season, the American media admitted they wrote off Ohtani far too early. Before the start of the season, the Angels announced that they would use him as both a hitter and a pitcher. Ohtani started as the designated hitter on Opening Day , March 29, against the Oakland Athletics , singling in his first at-bat off of Kendall Graveman . On April 1, he made his pitching debut, striking out six batters in six innings while allowing three runs, to pick up his first MLB win. On April 3, Ohtani hit his first MLB home run,
8107-417: The end of the 2011 season). In 1998, the Arizona Diamondbacks became the league's fifteenth franchise, and the Milwaukee Brewers moved from the AL to the NL, giving the NL 16 teams for the next 15 seasons. In 1994, the league was again reorganized, into three geographical divisions (East, West and Central , all currently with five teams; from 1994 to 1997 the West had one fewer team, and from 1998 to 2012,
8228-421: The event ( Sho Nakata was the only other member of Samurai Japan to be picked for the All-Star team). In 104 games and 382 plate appearances in 2016, Ohtani hit 22 home runs. He also hit 18 doubles, 67 RBI, batted .322 with an OBP of .416, scored 65 runs, and had seven stolen bases. He won the Best Nine award as the designated hitter. Ohtani was the same dominant pitcher on the mound. In 21 games pitched, he had
8349-465: The first pitcher out of high school to notch two shutout victories within his first two years in the NPB since Yu Darvish. During the July 2014 Mazda All-Star Game, he threw a 162 km/h (101 mph) fastball in the bottom of the first inning, setting a new record for the fastest official pitch thrown by a Japanese pitcher, beating the record set by the Yakult Swallows' Yoshinori Sato in 2010 (161 km/h (100 mph)). The jersey he wore during
8470-519: The first player in Angels history to hit 40 home runs and have 20 stolen bases in the same season. He joined Alex Rodriguez in 2007 and Ken Griffey Jr. in 1999 as the 3rd AL player to accomplish this feat before September. He also became the first AL player to reach both of those totals in a season since Curtis Granderson in 2011. From September 22 to 25, Ohtani drew 13 walks in a 4-game span, tying an AL/NL record set by Babe Ruth in 1930, Bryce Harper in 2016, and Yasmani Grandal in 2021. He drew
8591-642: The first player in MLB history to have at least 45 homers, 25 stolen bases, 100 RBIs, 100 runs, and eight triples in a season and the second player in AL history to record at least 45 homers and 25 stolen bases in a season, joining Jose Canseco in 1998. He led the league with a wins above replacement (WAR) value of 9.1 and finished third in home runs (46), fourth in slugging percentage (.592), fifth in OPS (.965), first in triples (eight), fifth in drawing walks (96), eighth in stolen bases (26), second in extra-base hits (80), second in intentional walks (20), fifth in OPS+ (158), and first in power-speed number (33.2). Ohtani
8712-582: The game against the Houston Astros on September 2. However, hampered by a tight back and sore finger he only lasted 2 + 1 ⁄ 3 innings in the game. Ohtani ended his first major league season with a batting average of .285, a .361 on-base-percentage, 22 home runs, 61 RBIs, and 10 stolen bases. In 10 starts on the mound, he notched a 4–2 record with a 3.31 ERA, 1.16 walks plus hits per inning pitched (WHIP), and 63 strikeouts. His .564 slugging percentage ranked seventh overall among MLB players with at least 350 plate appearances for this season. He became
8833-565: The game sold for 1,752,000 yen ($ 17,000 ), making it the top-seller at the All-Star 2014 Charity Auction. The proceeds were donated to three Tohoku earthquake children's relief funds. On October 5 against the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles , Ohtani recorded the fastest pitch by a Japanese pitcher in an official game, tying Marc Kroon 's allord for NPB pitchers. The pitch came against lead-off hitter Akaminai Ginji in
8954-429: The greatest in baseball history, with some comparing them favorably to the early career of Babe Ruth . Considered early on as an elite two-way player, Ohtani was the first pick of the Fighters in the 2012 NPB draft. He played for the Fighters from 2013 through 2017 as a pitcher and an outfielder , and won the 2016 Japan Series with them. The Fighters posted Ohtani to MLB after the 2017 season, and he signed with
9075-670: The ineffective National Commission with a one-man Commissioner in the person of federal Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis . The National League circuit remained unchanged from 1900 through 1952. In 1953 the Braves moved from Boston to Milwaukee ; in 1966 they moved again, to Atlanta . In 1958 the Brooklyn Dodgers and the New York Giants moved to Los Angeles and San Francisco, respectively, bringing major league baseball to
9196-403: The injury. Ohtani's debut MLB spring training in 2018 was disastrous and the majority of American news sources were extremely disappointed, concluding that he could not accomplish even one of his two-way abilities. Over two spring games against major leaguer batters, in just 2.2 innings pitching he gave up three home runs and had a 27.0 earned run average (average ERA for MLB pitchers
9317-399: The institution of interleague play, little remains to differentiate between the two leagues. By 2011, MLB had changed its policy on interleague play, deciding to schedule interleague games throughout the season rather than only during specially designated periods. This policy would allow each league to have 15 teams, with one team in each league playing an interleague game on any given day. As
9438-730: The league: the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta Braves (originally in Boston, and later Milwaukee). The Cubs are the only charter member to play continuously in the same city. The other two pre-1892 teams still in the league are the Philadelphia Phillies and the San Francisco Giants (originally New York), both of which joined in 1883. The National League became a 12-team circuit with monopoly status for
9559-644: The merger, the NL absorbed the St. Louis Browns (now known as the St. Louis Cardinals ), along with three other teams that did not survive into the 20th century—the Baltimore Orioles (not the current MLB team), Louisville Colonels , and Washington Statesmen . While four teams that moved from the AA remain in the NL today (Pittsburgh [1887], Cincinnati [1890], Los Angeles [originally Brooklyn; 1890], and St. Louis [1892]), only two original NL franchises (1876) remain in
9680-408: The modern era to qualify for both the hitting and pitching leaderboards in one season, finishing third in the AL with 219 strikeouts. Ohtani won his second AL MVP in 2023, leading the AL with 44 home runs while recording 10 wins as a pitcher. He was the first player to win multiple unanimous MVPs and the first Japanese-born player to win a league home run title . After the 2023 season, Ohtani signed
9801-466: The more "traditional" league, a reputation most exemplified by the NL's more prevalent use of " smallball " tactics and lack of a designated hitter rule, which the AL implemented in 1973. However, with the advent of free agency in the 1970s allowing for more player movement between leagues, and the introduction of regular season interleague play in 1997, the difference in play between the two major leagues has diminished considerably. The NL's adoption of
9922-513: The most home runs hit during a season by a Japanese-born player in MLB. Ohtani became the first player to be selected as an All-Star as both a position player and a pitcher. Ohtani participated in the 2021 Home Run Derby on July 12. He lost to Juan Soto in the first round, but set a record for the most home runs in the Derby of at least 500 feet with six. In the All-Star Game , he was
10043-424: The mound was among the best in the league, earning him the starter role in the 2015 All-Star Game and the pitching spot in the end-of-year Pacific League Best Nine awards. Ohtani started the 2015 NPB All-Star Game 1 for the PL. He went two innings and struck out two, allowing one run (on a double by Yoshitomo Tsutsugo and a single by Jose Lopez ), relieved by Nishi with a 1–0 deficit. The PL would lose 8–6 but he got
10164-456: The new 2020 MLB season rules in a game against the Oakland Athletics . He was thrown out in a rundown. On July 26, Ohtani returned to the mound against the Oakland Athletics , making his first pitching appearance since September 2018. He allowed five runs and was removed from the mound without recording an out, starting his season with a loss and an infinite ERA . After his second start he began to experience discomfort in his right arm, and it
10285-474: The new league, but reality set in as talent and money was split between the two leagues, diluting the league and decreasing financial success. After two years of bitter contention, a new version of the National Agreement was signed in 1903. This meant formal acceptance of each league by the other as an equal partner in major-league baseball, mutual respect of player contracts, and an agreement to play
10406-419: The newly christened American League (AL) when the minor Western League changed its name to the AL in 1900, with the approval of the NL, which regarded the AL as a lesser league since they were a party to the National Agreement. The AL declined to renew its National Agreement membership when it expired the next year, and on January 28, 1901, the AL officially declared itself a second major league in competition with
10527-500: The offices of American League and National League presidents were discontinued and all authority was vested in the Commissioner's office. The leagues subsequently appointed "honorary" presidents to carry out ceremonial roles such as the awarding of league championship trophies. Additionally, the distinction between AL and NL umpires was erased, and instead all umpires were unified under MLB control. Following these actions, as well as
10648-578: The other one) and one second-place vote. He had 1,268 vote points, to 298 for runner-up Laird. In 2017, he played in 65 games, hitting .332 with eight homers and 31 RBIs while posting a 3–2 record, a 3.20 ERA, and 29 strikeouts as a pitcher. In September, it was revealed that Ohtani would ask to be posted at the end of the season to play in Major League Baseball in 2018. However, before that could happen, he had surgery on his right ankle in early October. The injury had originally occurred in
10769-417: The plate, and a 1.35 ERA with 17 strikeouts and one walk in 20 innings. On August 18, Ohtani hit his 40th of the year, becoming the first left-handed batter in Angels history to reach 40 home runs, surpassing lefty Reggie Jackson 's 1982 record of 39. He capped off the month of August by stealing his 20th base in a game on August 28 against the San Diego Padres , becoming the first Japanese-born player and
10890-402: The presence of the pitcher in the NL batting order. As the collective bargaining agreement came closer to expiring after the 2021 season, owners expressed their intentions to use the designated hitter in all games starting in 2022. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, rule changes were instituted in both leagues for the 2020 season , which included an abbreviated 60-game schedule,
11011-402: The rest of the decade. The league became embroiled in numerous internal conflicts, not the least of which was a plan supported by some owners (and bitterly opposed by others) to form a "trust", wherein there would be one common ownership of all twelve teams. The NL used its monopsony power to force a $ 2,400 ($ 85,000 today) limit on annual player wages in 1894. As the 20th century dawned, the NL
11132-521: The same high school as pitcher Yusei Kikuchi , whom he admired; Ohtani competed there as a swimmer and played baseball. Ohtani's high school baseball coach, Hiroshi Sasaki, said that he was a fast swimmer who could have competed in the Olympics. Under Sasaki's guidance, Hanamaki Higashi's players lived on campus, returning home for only six days a year. Sasaki would assign toilet cleaning chores to Ohtani, to teach him humility. In 2012, Ohtani threw
11253-542: The same season. Additionally, in the same game, Ohtani became the first pitcher to throw a scoreless top half and record a hit, a RBI, a stolen base and a scored run while playing in an AL ballpark since Luis Tiant did so for the Minnesota Twins on April 26, 1970. Ohtani would finish the month of July as the first player in Major League history to ever have at least 37 home runs and 15 stolen bases before
11374-677: The second-fastest Angels rookie to reach 20 home runs, and he joined Babe Ruth as the only MLB players with 10 pitching appearances and 20 homers in a season. He also won the American League Rookie of the Month award twice; in April and in September. On September 3, it was revealed that Ohtani would undergo Tommy John surgery , after an MRI showed new damage to his UCL. He underwent the surgery on October 1. On November 12, he
11495-420: The signing team also had to pay a $ 20 million posting fee to the Fighters. Ohtani narrowed his finalists to seven teams, signing with the Angels for a $ 2.315 million bonus. On December 9, 2017, Ohtani signed his deal with the Los Angeles Angels . On December 13, it was revealed that he had been diagnosed with a first-degree UCL sprain in his right elbow and received a platelet-rich plasma injection to treat
11616-632: The stability of the AA. Other new leagues that rose to compete with the National League were the Union Association and the Players' League . The Union Association was established in 1884 and folded after playing only one season, its league champion St. Louis Maroons joining the NL. The Players' League was established in 1890 by the Brotherhood of Professional Base-Ball Players, the sport's first players' union, which had failed to persuade
11737-494: The stands of the South End Grounds started a fire. The blaze quickly got out of hand and swept through downtown Boston, destroying or damaging 100 buildings. Team owners argued with each other, and players hated the NL's $ 2,400 salary cap. Many teams also ran into trouble with city governments that forbade recreational activities on Sunday . Billy Sunday , a prominent outfielder in the 1880s, became so disgusted with
11858-408: The starting pitcher and leadoff designated hitter for the American League. On July 26, in his 15th pitching start of the season against the Colorado Rockies , Ohtani became the first pitcher in league history to register 100 strikeouts while holding a major-league-leading 35 home runs before the end of July, as no pitcher had ever recorded triple-digit strikeouts and added more than nine home runs in
11979-549: The starting pitcher and the leadoff hitter. Ohtani recorded two home runs, including a grand slam , on May 9, against the Tampa Bay Rays , marking the second time of the season and the eighth time in his career for Ohtani to record a multi-homer game, surpassing Ichiro Suzuki for the most by a Japanese-born player in MLB history, The grand slam was the first of his professional career, including both NPB and MLB. On May 14, he hit his 100th career MLB home run, making him
12100-717: The state capital of Albany, New York ), Worcester ( Massachusetts ), Boston , and Providence . In 1883, new New York and Philadelphia clubs began National League play. Both teams remain in the NL today, the Phillies in their original city and the New York franchise (later named Giants) now in San Francisco since 1958. The NL encountered its first strong rival organization when the American Association began play in 1882. The AA played in cities where
12221-457: The struggling league. By 1880, six of the eight charter members had folded. The two remaining original NL franchises, Boston and Chicago, remain still in operation today as the Atlanta Braves and the Chicago Cubs . When all eight participants for 1881 returned for 1882—the first off-season without turnover in membership—the "circuit" consisted of a zig-zag line connecting the eight cities: Chicago , Detroit , Cleveland , Buffalo , Troy (near
12342-533: The third Japanese-born player with at least 100 homers in the majors, trailing only Hideki Matsui with 175 and Suzuki with 117. Ohtani also joined Babe Ruth as the only players with at least 100 home runs and at least 250 strikeouts as a pitcher. National League (baseball) The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs , known simply as the National League ( NL ), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in
12463-478: The top pitcher and top DH in the PL. He became the first player to receive the awards as both a pitcher and a hitter. He topped four-time Cuban MVP Alfredo Despaigne easily at DH (190 votes to 47; three others combined for eight votes) but the vote at pitcher was closer (he had 111 of 245 votes, Ishikawa 69 and Tsuyoshi Wada 61). He was the runaway winner of the 2016 Pacific League Most Valuable Player Award, getting 253 of 254 first-place votes ( Naoki Miyanishi got
12584-414: The tying run. He thus produced three of the PL's five runs in the 5–5 tie, earning him game MVP honors. He hit 165 km/h (102.5 mph) on the radar gun during the year, setting a new NPB record. The record was broken by Thyago Vieira five years later, but he still holds the record for a Japanese player. He finished the year at .322/.416/.588 with 22 home runs in 382 plate appearances on offense and
12705-417: The use of the designated hitter in all games, and expanded rosters. The National League reverted to its old batting rules during the 2021 season , but starting with the 2022 season , they permanently adopted the designated hitter rule after a new CBA was ratified. For the first 96 years of its coexistence with the American League, National League teams faced their AL counterparts only in exhibition games,
12826-556: The way he wanted to. Ohtani said, "[Until 2019], I could more or less do the things I wanted to do. I'd pretty much never experienced the feeling of wanting to do something but being completely unable to do it." After the results of the 2019 and 2020 seasons, Ohtani spent the offseason overhauling himself. He adjusted his diet, threw bullpen sessions earlier than usual and took batting practice against live pitching, an offseason first for him. He also embraced data and technology to optimize his training and recovery and also tinkered with
12947-410: The year unbeaten at home, going 6–0 with a 1.95 ERA in 13 starts. Ohtani's home ERA was the lowest by an Angels starter since Jered Weaver in 2011. He also became the sixth starter in AL or NL history to make at least 13 home starts without a losing decision and an ERA below 2.00 in a season. In the last game of the season against the Seattle Mariners , he passed teammate Mike Trout 's 45 home runs in
13068-434: Was 4.14 that year). He completed his five game spring training, three of which against minor leaguers, with an 11.7 ERA in pitching, and 4 hits for 32 at bats , .125/.222/.125 in batting ( batting average / on-base percentage / slugging percentage , averaged .248/.318/.409 for MLB batters that year). Several major newspapers suggested he needed plenty of Triple-A minor league appearances before starting for Angels. By
13189-583: Was a national-level badminton player in high school and his father Tōru ( 徹 ) worked at a local automobile manufacturing plant and was an amateur baseball player who played in the Japanese Industrial League . Ohtani is the youngest of three children. He has one older sister, Yuka, and one older brother, Ryuta ( 龍太 ) , who is also an amateur baseball player in the Japanese Industrial League. In Japan, Ohtani
13310-441: Was assigned the jersey number 11, previously worn by Yu Darvish . Ohtani made his debut at age 18 in the Fighters' season-opening game on March 29, 2013, playing as a right fielder . He was selected for a Pacific League roster spot for the 2013 All-star game . As a pitcher, he finished the season with a 3–0 record in 11 starts. As a rookie Ohtani was used in both the outfield (leading the Fighters with 51 games in right) and as
13431-402: Was disputed by some, such as former Detroit Tigers manager Jim Leyland , who claimed that the American League is more difficult because AL managers are required to know exactly when to pull a pitcher, whereas an NL manager merely pulls his pitcher when that spot comes up in the batting order. Overall, there were fewer home runs and runs scored in the National League than in the American, due to
13552-546: Was established with eight charter members, as follows: The National League's formation meant the end of the old National Association after only five seasons, as its remaining clubs shut down or reverted to amateur or minor league status. The only strong club from 1875 excluded in 1876 was a second one in Philadelphia, often called the White Stockings or later Phillies . The first game in National League history
13673-567: Was eventually revealed that he had a flexor strain in his right elbow after undergoing an MRI. He was shut down from pitching for the rest of the season. On the offensive side, Ohtani finished the season batting .190/.291/.366 with seven home runs, 24 RBIs, and seven stolen bases in 43 games. The culmination of experiencing injuries in his 2019 and 2020 campaigns led to Ohtani describing feeling "frustrated" and "useless". He went on to say that while his 2019 had been disappointing, his 2020 had been "more like pathetic" because he could not pitch or hit
13794-474: Was in trouble. Conduct among players was poor, and fistfights were a common sight at games. In addition to fighting each other, they fought with the umpires and often filled the air at games with foul language and obscenities. A game between the Orioles and Boston Beaneaters (a precursor to today's Atlanta Braves) in 1894 ended up having tragic consequences when players became engaged in a brawl and several boys in
13915-498: Was inconvenient to them. William A. Hulbert (1832–1882), a Chicago businessman and an officer of the Chicago White Stockings of 1870–1889, approached several NA clubs with the plans for a professional league for the sport of baseball with a stronger central authority and exclusive territories in larger cities only. Additionally, Hulbert had a problem: five of his star players were threatened with expulsion from
14036-678: Was known as a " yakyū shōnen " ( 野球少年 ; "baseball boy")—a kid who lives, eats and breathes baseball. Coached by his father, he displayed an aptitude for the game at an early age. He began playing baseball in his second year of elementary school, and as a seventh-grader, Ohtani recorded all but one of 18 outs in a six- inning regional championship game. As a teenager, Ohtani could have played baseball for any powerhouse high school team in big cities such as Osaka or Yokohama . Instead, he opted to stay local, selecting Hanamaki Higashi High School in Iwate Prefecture , Northern Japan,
14157-538: Was named the American League Rookie of the Year . On May 7, 2019, Ohtani played in his first game with the Angels since undergoing Tommy John surgery, batting as a designated hitter against the Detroit Tigers . In a June 13 game against the Tampa Bay Rays , he became the first Japanese-born player to hit for the cycle in MLB history. On September 12, his season prematurely ended after it
14278-637: Was played on April 22, 1876, at Philadelphia 's Jefferson Street Grounds , at 25th & Jefferson Streets, between the Philadelphia Athletics and the Boston baseball club. Boston won the game 6–5. The new league's authority was soon tested after the first season. The Athletic and Mutual clubs fell behind in the standings and refused to make western road trips late in the season, preferring to play games against local non-league competition to recoup some of their financial losses rather than travel extensively incurring more costs. Hulbert reacted to
14399-404: Was revealed that he needed surgery to repair a bipartite patella . He finished the season batting .286/.343/.505 with 18 home runs, 62 RBIs, and 12 stolen bases in 106 games. The 2020 MLB season did not start until July 24 due to the COVID-19 pandemic . On July 24, Ohtani was the first ever automatic player on second base in an official MLB game at the start of the 10th inning as part of one of
14520-433: Was the most by an AL player since Trout in 2018. Ohtani, who batted .257/.372/.592, including 46 home runs — runner-up for the MLB lead in homers , 100 RBI, 103 runs, and 26 steals in 155 games and 639 plate appearances, hit several milestones to close his season, reaching both 100 RBIs and 100 runs for the first time in his career. He also tied for the MLB lead with eight triples to go along with 26 stolen bases. Ohtani became
14641-512: Was unanimously voted the American League Most Valuable Player , becoming the 23rd pitcher and first designated hitter to win the award. For the 2021 All-MLB Team , Ohtani is the only player to be named to both teams, first team and second team, in the same season (as a designated hitter and starting pitcher respectively). He became the first pitcher, the first Japanese player and the first Angels player to win
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