Shohei Ohtani won his second straight annual Edgar Martinez Outstanding Designated Hitter Award on Monday, the Los Angeles Angels two-way star receiving his first postseason accolade of the year.
Houston Astros designated hitter Yordan Alvarez, who also plays left field, batted .306 with 37 home runs and 97 RBIs in 135 games, but in terms of stats as a DH, Ohtani's 34 home runs and 95 RBIs bettered Alvarez's 19 homers and 52 RBIs.
American League MVP Aaron Judge, who hit an AL-record 62 home runs, played predominantly in the outfield, and his 87 at-bats as a DH fell short of the 100 required to be nominated for the Edgar Martinez award.
Ohtani raised his batting average to .273 from his MVP-winning 2021 season's .257.
He also became the first player in the World Series era since 1903 with enough plate appearances and innings pitched to qualify for both the batting and ERA titles in the same season.
On the mound, Ohtani won a career-high 15 games while placing third in the AL with 219 strikeouts and fourth with a 2.33 ERA.
Unlike last year, an MLB rule change ahead of the season allowed Ohtani to remain in the game as DH after coming out as a pitcher.
