Former All-Star closer compares Angels' Shohei Ohtani to Babe Ruth

Former MLB closer Jonathan Papelbon is the latest noteworthy member of the baseball community to compare Los Angeles Angels two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani to the legendary Babe Ruth. 

"People need to realize how lucky they are," Papelbon said about fans experiencing Ohtani's greatness during an appearance on the WEEI "Baseball isn't Boring" podcast, as shared by Khari Thompson of Boston.com. "In my opinion, if you asked me right now if I’d rather watch Babe Ruth play or Shohei Ohtani, I’m going to tell you Ohtani. He is the modern-day version of Babe Ruth, and we should feel blessed to be watching it." 

Ohtani earned American League Most Valuable Player honors for the 2021 season and is cruising toward winning the award a second time before he reaches free agency at the end of the campaign. According to ESPN stats, he began Monday leading all of MLB with 24 home runs, 58 RBI and a 1.015 OPS. The 28-year-old unicorn was also fourth among all pitchers with 105 strikeouts and responsible for a 6-2 record with a 3.29 ERA and 1.05 WHIP across 14 starts and 82 innings of work. 

"I’m starting to think, is this guy even real? I know what it takes to play, I know what it takes to prepare," Papelbon said. "To have to do it on both ends totally amazes me. It’s just, we really should consider ourselves lucky to see this guy play. What else can you say about this guy when he’s freaking raking and hitting bombs and pumping 100 [mph]?" 

As of Monday afternoon, OddsChecker listed Ohtani as the overwhelming betting favorite at -335 odds to win AL MVP. To compare, injured New York Yankees slugger and reigning MVP Aaron Judge trailed only Ohtani among favorites at +1900 odds. 

Ohtani continues to be linked with big-spending clubs such as the New York Mets and Los Angeles Dodgers, and it's believed he could earn as much as $600M from his next contract. Assuming he remains healthy and produces a season unlike one any living person has ever witnessed, handfuls of owners may admit defeat as it pertains to landing the phenom long before he hits the open market.