Opinion: No surprise that Shohei Ohtani was the AP Athlete of the Year

Shohei Ohtani (Joe Glorioso/All-Pro Reels for Washington Times Sports, Wikimedia Commons)

In the world of sports we are in the process of seeing a generational icon. What Shohei Ohtani of Oshu, Japan is accomplishing at this moment in time is simply amazing. We are seeing a once in a lifetime talent shining on a regular stage in southern California. On Tuesday, Ohtani was named the Associated Press Male Athlete of the Year.

Ohtani is more than a beast. We have never seen a player like this ever. Ohtani is arguably in the top two in MLB in hitting, and is a superb pitcher as well. He has now won back-to-back World Series with the Dodgers and three straight MVP Awards (one in the American League while with the Los Angeles Angels and the last two in the National League with baseball’s other Los Angeles franchise).

In 2025, Ohtani led the majors in runs scored (146), and total bases (380). He led the National League with a .622 slugging percentage and 20 intentional walks. Ohtani also had a career-high 55 home runs, nine triples, and 109 walks, and was the NLCS MVP. In one game against the Milwaukee Brewers, Ohtani hit three home runs and had 10 strikeouts, in what was possibly the single best game a professional sports athlete has ever played. The Dodgers won the game 5-1 to advance to the World Series.

This is the fourth time in the last five years that Ohtani has been named the Associated Press Athlete of the Year. As long as Ohtani is hitting great, pitching great, and the Dodgers keep winning, it is very hard to argue that anyone else should win this prestigious award.