OAKLAND (California): Japanese two-way star Shohei Ohtani on Wednesday became the first player in the history of Major League Baseball since the World Series began in 1903 to qualify among the league leaders both as a pitcher and a hitter in the same season.

The 28-year-old Los Angeles Angels starting pitcher reached the necessary 162 innings on the mound this season to qualify for the league leaders when he completed the first inning in the day’s regular-season finale against the Oakland Athletics in the California city.

Since Ohtani was already a qualified hitter, his qualification as a pitcher made him the first MLB player to qualify for both pitching and hitting leader boards in the World Series era.

He qualified as a pitcher for the first time in his MLB career, which started in 2018.

This season, Ohtani served as an opening day pitcher for the first time, and excelled both in pitching and hitting. He was picked for the All-Star Game for the second consecutive season in July.

In August, Ohtani became the first MLB player to achieve double-digit wins and home runs in a single season since Babe Ruth in 1918.

Ohtani is a prospective candidate for the American League MVP award along with Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees, who has hit 62 home runs this season, a record for the league.

JIJI Press