Angels’ Shohei Ohtani ‘excited’ for 2023 season, fueled by losing AL MVP to Yankees’ Aaron Judge

Shohei Ohtani is ready for the 2023 season to start.

The Los Angeles Angels slugging pitcher received 28 second-place votes for AL MVP last year, and the award ultimately went to New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge. Ohtani, who was the 2021 AL MVP, is going to use this as extra motivation, according to Angels manager Phil Nevin.

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“I know he’s determined to have an even better year from last year. He wasn’t happy about not winning the MVP I can tell you that. But he wants to win first and foremost. He’s excited about the pieces we’ve added, and he’s really excited to get started with what we have lying ahead of us.”

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Last year as a hitter, Ohtani was fourth in the American League with 34 home runs and seventh with 95 RBI. As a pitcher, he was fourth in the AL with a 2.33 ERA, tied for fourth with 15 wins and third with 219 strikeouts. The 28-year-old was the first player in MLB history to record 30 home runs and 10 wins in the same season.