While Major League Baseball has been America’s favorite pastime with a majority of the players homegrown, one name that rewrote that script is the Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani. And the rest was history. To be fair, it’s now Shohei Ohtani’s world and we all are living in it. Now, following a victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks where Ohtani showed his true power, an American actor has lavished Ohtani with praise, drawing parallels with Deion Sanders.
Do you think that’s a good comparison?
Well, Deion Luwynn Sanders is from a different sports arena and is currently the coach of the Colorado Buffaloes. In his professional career, he made 512 tackles with 53 interceptions, along with covering 1331 interception yards. Sanders is also an eight-time Pro Bowler and played 14 NFL seasons for multiple teams, making him a heavyweight in his respective field.
Now, Adam Rodriguez, when asked during the MLB Network Podcast about one of the favorite athletes that he watches out for, mentioned it’s Shohei Ohtani. “The guy you can do both with is Shohei Ohtani. I think it’s so unique what he is doing. You know, it’s kind of like what both Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders would do one time, you know, when playing two sports. When you see somebody with that level of doing two things at that high level, you know you’re at the highest level of something. It’s extraordinary; you gotta stop and watch.”
Shohei Ohtani @BoJackson @DeionSanders
The @Dodgers superstar is one of actor Adam Rodriguez’s favorite athletes to watch!
MLB Network Podcast presented by @newbalance pic.twitter.com/SMTWAtuYFB
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) May 11, 2025
And yes, it’s true. The CSI: Miami star mentioned how Shohei Ohtani’s two-way play makes him a great player. The Los Angeles Dodgers superstar qualifies as a two-way player because he can pitch as well as bat perfectly. It never felt actually real until Ohtani did it in 2024—hitting 54 home runs in a single season and stealing 59 bases—achieving that 50-50 threshold in the grandest way possible.
But ever since he had his left shoulder labrum surgery in November 2023, he hasn’t been able to pitch. However, things are looking good now with Ohtani taking a major step forward in making progress with his pitching and, hopefully, he will soon be back on the mound.
Shohei Ohtani’s bullpen progression hints a probable comeback soon
Ever since Shohei Ohtani has paused his pitching, it has not been much of a problem for the Dodgers, as it was a luxury, which now turns into a necessity. The reason is that the Dodgers’ lineup has been marred by a series of injuries, especially for pitchers like Tyler Glasnow, Clayton Kershaw and, recently, Blake Snell. So now Ohtani has taken a step towards bullpen progression before facing the Diamondbacks at Chase Field.
Not to forget that Ohtani’s workload was aligned with what he has been doing since his return from paternity leave a few weeks back. Although there’s no official statement from the Dodgers about whether he will throw the entire pitch mix or face the hitters live, getting in the up-down surely reflects a major step towards making progress.
Manager Dave Roberts remains hopeful of him returning. “It’s significant because it sort of simulates an up-down inning. To see how he comes out of it after taking, call it, five to seven minutes of rest and to see how he responds.” While there’s no set timeline on his return to the mound, the Dodgers expect Shohei Ohtani to incorporate his off-speed pitches into the bullpen sessions, while the simulated games will further help him to get back to his pitching spectacle soon.
Do you think Shohei Ohtani can make a quick return to the mound?
The post Shohei Ohtani’s Dominance Sparks Powerful Message From $8M American Actor as He Draws Intriguing Parallel With Deion Sanders appeared first on EssentiallySports.