"Shohei Ohtani is ridiculous" - Ex-Phillies GM gives unbiased opinion on NL MVP race despite Kyle Schwarber loyalty

Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani is having another campaign for the history books. Fresh off the opening of the 50/50 club with 54 home runs and 59 stolen bases last season, the baseball unicorn has unlocked another 50/50 club, this time being the first player to ever hit 50 home runs and record 50 strikeouts in the same season.

Ohtani's had another history-making campaign that even former Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. can't help but be amazed of the reigning MVP's current achievements. However, Amaro Jr. keeps professed his faith on Philly star Kyle Schwarber to at least make the race competitive this year.

"Shohei Ohtani is ridiculous," said Amaro on the most recent episode of the Phillies Show. (12:54-12:56)

Amaro argues that Schwarber is still in the mix for the NL MVP talks with the noteworthy season that the slugger is having and Ohtani's limited starts. At the time of writing, Schwarber has tallied a massive NL-leading 53 home runs and MLB-leading 128 runs batted in on 138 base hits.

"Had [Ohtani] had more starts and had more of an impact as a starter, I think it'd be a runaway. But as it stands, there's still a fighting chance that Schwarber gets the nod." (12:41-12:55)

Nevertheless, Amaro, along with fellow podcast hosts Todd Zolecki and Jim Salisbury agreed that Ohtani himself is having another history-making campaign in 2025.

Shohei Ohtani tallies two doubles in close contest against rival Giants

Shohei Ohtani was the saving graces in the opening game win of the Dodgers against the Giants at Chavez Ravine. In a series curtain-raiser that featured just five base hits from the reigning champions and one from the visitors, Ohtani's two doubles were just a few that moved the runners in an otherwise uneventful offensive match.

Ohtani finished the game with the aforementioned doubles with one run scored in four at-bats. The scoring wouldn't kick off until the sixth inning when Giants catcher Patrick Bailey mishandled a ball at home plate that let Ben Rortvedt score for the Dodgers. It was then followed up by an RBI single by Freddie Freeman that drove Shohei Ohtani home.

The Giants then recorded their only score of the night when Rafael Devers was walked with the bases loaded, giving a free pass to Jung Hoo Lee at the plate.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto earned the victory after another brilliant outing having given up just one hit and six walks with seven strikeouts on 5 1/3 innings pitched. On the other hand, Giants ace Logan Webb recorded a loss after having a respectable outing himself with just two runs given up (one earned) on four base hits with one walk and five punch outs in seven innings pitched.