The Riverside Press-Enterprise
Nevin: Ohtani ‘best baseball player’ ever
ANAHEIM >> As Shohei Ohtani puts the finishing touches on a second straight historic season, Phil Nevin is not holding back with his praise.
“He’s the best baseball player I think anybody has ever seen, to be honest,” the Angels manager said. “I really believe that. All around. I don’t think there’s any argument you can make that he’s not the best baseball player that’s played the game.”
A day after the Angels and the reigning American League MVP agreed on a record-breaking $30 million contract for his final year of arbitration eligibility in 2023, Nevin said he expects Ohtani to continue to dominate next season.
“He’s going to be a free agent after next year, so I would anticipate him having one of the best years of his career,” Nevin said. “Nothing surprises me with him. Whatever he does, next year he might go 40-40 (homers and stolen bases) and win 20. Who knows with him? The sky’s always the limit.”
Ohtani is currently eligible for free agency following the 2023 season. The Angels still could sign him to an extension before then, but that likely won’t be discussed seriously until the ownership situation is settled. Owner Arte Moreno announced in August that he’s exploring a sale of the team, and it’s believed that both Moreno and Ohtani would like to defer any decisions about the two-way player’s future until the next owner is in place.
In the meantime, Ohtani has a few games left to try to sway the 30 MVP voters away from presumptive winner Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees. Judge has already tied the American League home run record with 61, and he’s chasing a Triple Crown.
The combination of those achievements, along with the fact the Yankees are going to the playoffs and the Angles aren’t, is why it seems that much of the baseball media has already penciled Ohtani into the runner-up spot.
Ohtani is hitting .276 with an .886 OPS and 34 homers. He went into Sunday’s action fifth in the league in OPS and fourth in homers. On the mound, Ohtani is 15-8 with a 2.35 ERA and league-leading 11.9 strikeouts per nine innings. He is fourth in the league in ERA.
Ohtani is scheduled to make his final start on the mound this season on Wednesday in Oakland.
Nevin's status
The Angels are expected to make a determination on Nevin’s future with the team quickly, perhaps even before the final game on Wednesday.
Nevin was named interim manager after Joe Maddon was fired in June.
The Angels were 27-29 under Maddon and are 46-57 under Nevin. The Angels’ seven-game winning streak brought them to 34-33 since the All-star break, though.
Nevin said on Sunday that he has “enjoyed every bit of (the opportunity). I’ve loved it. It’s everything I anticipated.”
Also
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Third baseman Anthony Rendon served the final game of his five-game suspension Sunday. Rendon is expected to play the final three games in Oakland. Rendon was believed to be out for the season after undergoing wrist surgery in June, but he made it back not only in time to serve the suspension, but also to give himself the peace of mind of being healthy going into the offseason.