Another grab bag! Instead of covering one topic in depth, I’m going to touch on a few things going on in the sports world. Some may call me lazy for doing this, but I think a more appropriate description would be “versatile”.
THE SHOHEI SHOW
Shohei Ohtani is unbelievable. We are legitimately watching a top 5 baseball player of all time in his prime. It’s hard to compare Shohei to other players because he’s the first player to do the kind of thing he’s doing (being a legitimate pitcher and hitter) since the times of Babe Ruth. It’s hard to comprehend that this guy is basically top 10 in the world at two completely different aspects of the sport.
The other night against the White Sox, Shohei posted 6.1 innings of one-run ball while recording 10 strikeouts. He also happened to go 3-3 with 2 dingers, a single, and a walk. He basically single-handedly won the game for the Angels, reflected by the fact that he recorded 0.8 WAR (basically a calculation for how many wins a player is responsible for above a replacement-level player, for those of you who aren’t total nerds) on this night alone. 6 WAR in a season is considered an all-star-level campaign, and Shohei eclipsed this mark before the halfway point. It’s just insane. With the value he brings on the field (and from the Japanese market), he could be looking at a $700+ million dollar contract after this season, and $700 million might be considered an underpay. Hopefully he likes his Team Japan buddy and Red Sox rookie Masataka Yoshida enough to consider Boston. The Red Sox ownership better open their checkbooks if given the chance.
DOMINGO GERMÁN THROWS MLB’S 24th PERFECT GAME
In other baseball news, Yankees pitcher Domingo Germán threw the first perfect game since Mariners’ ace Félix Hernández tossed one in 2012. The perfect game is an incredible accomplishment. Retiring 27 of the best baseball batters in the world in a row is a spectacular achievement, made even more impressive by the fact that he needed under 100 pitches (99) to do it. Now, some may argue (me) that it shouldn’t count because this was clearly a fluke. In his previous 2 outings, the guy allowed a combined 15 earned runs in 5.1 total innings. He’s a sucky loser Yankee (contractually obligated language from the Red Sox fan code of conduct that all Bostonians have tattooed on their asscheek when they’re born) who got lucky against a minor-league level Oakland lineup that was constructed for the purpose of losing so their owner could justify a move to Las Vegas.
Also, not going to get too far into this because it was in the past and I haven’t looked far into the details, but many fans are against Germán because he was accused of abusing his wife. Due to this, what is normally a pretty universally celebrated event in baseball has become bittersweet for some fans. He and his wife are still together, though, and he is reportedly a reformed man who has been on his best behavior since.
Nevertheless, he accomplished something great on the field, and that deserves recognition. Congratulations, Domingo!
NHL DRAFT NIGHT ONE ANALYSIS
The NHL Draft first round was also last night, and while I am a big hockey fan (and it was my best sport as a player), I will be the first to admit that I do not have a thorough understanding of the draft class beyond the top storylines. There’s players from all over the world from all kinds of leagues, and it doesn’t receive nearly the same media coverage as the NFL and NBA drafts. I just haven’t followed the news in that regard closely enough to do an in-depth analysis. I’ll discuss a couple things, though.
Connor Bedard is a Chicago Blackhawk. He has been one of the most hyped prospects in recent memory, joining the likes of Crosby and McDavid in that respect; it’s pretty much been known that he would be going number 1 for 3+ years now. Last night just made it official. The kid’s gonna be a stud too. I’ve watched him make Canadian juniors and international World Juniors competition look like a joke. He has unreal hands and his shot and release are just insane. He has a kind of confidence on the ice that is obvious when you watch him. Chicago was given a get out of jail free card from the league by winning the lottery after they’ve slowly run the organization into the ground with poor play and scandal over the past 5 years. So, they better not waste Bedard’s talent that just fell into their lap.
I was shocked when Anaheim didn’t take Fantilli at two. The kid came into the NCAA as a freshman and dominated in an elite conference. College hockey is filled with guys who start college later and rosters often have a bunch of guys who are 23-25 years old, and he still kicked ass as an 18 year old. He even won the Hobey Baker as the top player in the country. I thought he was a slam dunk for the 2nd overall pick so the Ducks could continue to build their strong young core, adding to forwards Troy Terry and Trevor Zegras, but they went with Leo Carlsson instead from Örebro HK of the Swedish Hockey League. I’m sure Carlsson is very impressive in his own right; I honestly don’t know much about him. I think Fantilli is going to be a high level NHL stud, though, and I think the Ducks could regret passing up on him. Columbus should be thrilled with their pick.
The Flyers got Matvei Michkov at seven. This one is interesting because it could either be the steal of the draft or a major miss. It’s a fun pick either way. If my Bruins were in that spot, I would’ve wanted them to pick him as well. What makes him a weird case is that he’s from Russia, and while he’s considered potentially the best Russian prospect since Ovechkin in 2004 (who turned out pretty well), he’s under contract with SKA St. Petersburg of the KHL through the 2025-26 season, so he’s unlikely to play in the NHL for at least 3 years, and maybe more depending on what’s going on in Russia or if Michkov just wants to stay. The Flyers are underway with a rebuild right now, though, so they can afford to be patient. I think they made the right move given the state of their team.
A2Z SPORTS JOINS TWITTER!
In the most important recent sports news, beloved sports media outlet A2Z Sports, known for their sweet website (this website: a2zsportstakes.com), elite journalism, and their funny, handsome, and charming contributors, have joined Twitter!
We just got the account up and running last week. We post our articles, our quick thoughts, and reply to the news others tweet out. We usually keep it pretty light and humorous, and it’s a great way to keep up to date with our content and interact with us. Give us a follow @A2ZSportsTakes.