2021 was undoubtedly the year of Shohei Ohtani. The unanimous AL MVP had the first true 2-way season in professional baseball for a long time. How long a period? The last time this happened, Babe Ruth donned the Red Sox jersey and played out of Boston. Ohtani has made Anaheim his home in recent times and has come out as a fan favorite with his play and general capabilities on the diamond. And his fans have repaid his performances with love and adoration.

Shohei Ohtani is without question one of the most exciting players in the league. And forming a tandem with Mike Trout in Anaheim next season, we can expect to see some fireworks from both their barrels. With Ohtani, we even expect to see some strong performances from the mound. But even before the 2022 season can begin, Ohtani has already managed to capture the viewers’ imagination.

Shohei Ohtani voted as #1 card by fans

In a tweet, the card company, Topps, recently announced that concluding a fan vote, Shohei Ohtani is all set to be card #1 for the 2022 Topps Series 1 baseball card.

The tweet also contained a comment from Ohtani expressing his gratitude and happiness at the unique recognition he received. Ohtani said, “Being voted by the fans as the number one card in this year’s Topps set is a great honor!”

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Ohtani in 2021

Ohtani performed out of his skin in 2021. He had a season for the ages, performing on both ends of the game card. So fascinating was his performance that it has also gained recognition from his teammates. Former MVP Mike Trout wrote, “Shohei’s season was nothing short of electric.”

Offensively, he was formidable. Ohtani posted a .965 OPS while stealing 26 bases and adding a league-leading 8 triples. He did this while scoring homers on a regular basis, with 46 for the season.

With that tally, he became only the 6th player in history to notch up both 45 home runs and 25 stolen bases in a season. Ohtani joins an esteemed company on the list, with Jose Canseco, Larry Walker, and Barry Bonds all featuring on it.

Defensively too, Ohtani was a big contributor. Compiling 130 1/3 innings on the mound, Ohtani boasted a 3.18 ERA with 156 strikeouts and 44 walks; Significant stats even if he were just pitching for the team.

The Angels will certainly be hoping for Trout’s return to action. That would mean we finally get to see both Ohtani and Trout performing at an elite level for the team together in quite a while. And if the Angels can get their season run together better, who knows a pennant might not be far.