Los Angeles Angels starter Shohei Ohtani walks off the mound after giving up a solo home run to Los Angeles Dodgers' Corey Seager during the second inning of a spring training exhibition baseball game Monday, March 29, 2021, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)
By GREG BEACHAM
ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — Most of the time in professional sports, it’s easy to think it’s all been done before.
With so many finetuned athletes constantly pushing each other to the peak of human potential, we can experience unprecedented demonstrations of sporting brilliance every week of our lives. But it’s truly rare to witness anything that isn’t fundamentally just a better, more prolific version of something we’ve already seen.
That’s why Shohei Ohtani’s astonishing redefinition of modern baseball captured the world’s attention so vividly in 2021 — and that’s why the Los Angeles Angels’ two-way superstar is the winner of The Associated Press’ Male Athlete of the Year award.
The unanimous American League MVP put together a season with no analo
