Angels DH Shohei Ohtani watches his two-run homer sail out on Saturday. Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Baseball historian Bill James seemingly takes a swipe at Shohei Ohtani

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Grey Papke | Last updated 5/19/19

Author, historian and statistician Bill James isn’t a big fan of hype, it seems, and that means he’s a bit of a skeptic when it comes to Shohei Ohtani.

James, regarded as the godfather of baseball analytics, took a swipe at Ohtani — or perhaps more specifically the hype surrounding him — on Saturday.

You remember how, a year ago, everybody was all excited about Shohei Ohtani being the next Babe Ruth?

That was fun.

— Bill James Online (@billjamesonline) May 18, 2019

Ohtani has 24 home runs in 368 major-league at-bats. No, he’s not Babe Ruth, but that’s still impressive and a pretty significant total. Just to drive the point home, Ohtani homered on Saturday.

James has a curmudgeonly side and has made some other comments that didn’t go over well in the past. It’s not clear what his big issue with Ohtani is, but it could be considered a little over the top.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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