Major League Baseball

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts: I'm taking Shohei Ohtani over Babe Ruth 'all day long'

Published Jun. 6, 2024 6:26 p.m. ET

Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani and baseball legend Babe Ruth will be compared to each other for eternity, as they've both hit and pitched at the highest level.

With that in mind, who is Dodgers manager Dave Roberts taking: Ohtani or Ruth?

On Thursday's edition of "The Herd," Roberts answered in plain terms.

"Like you, we didn't see Babe Ruth, but I'll take Ohtani all day long, given how difficult the game is and the specializations of it and the foot-speed," Roberts told host Colin Cowherd. "Just the physicality, when you get up on Shohei, he's a lot bigger than you think. He's like Clayton Kershaw where you see him on the mound, he's got baggy pants on, but when you get up on him, he is very physical, and Shohei's the same way. He's got broad shoulders, thin waist, not an ounce of fat on him. When I see him from the dugout, just to watch him chew up ground when he's legging out a triple or gaining 90 feet down the line for an infield hit.

"And then you look at the sheer raw power, just everything he does, he is the best on the field at every aspect of the game."

In what is his debut season with the Dodgers, Ohtani has totaled 15 home runs, 40 RBIs and 14 stolen bases, while boasting a .322/.390/.598 slash line. He leads the National League with a .989 OPS and 179 OPS+. The Dodgers are 38-25, good for first in the NL West.

Ohtani isn't expected to pitch this season due to suffering a torn UCL in his pitching elbow in 2023 with the Los Angeles Angels. He has a combined 3.01 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 143 ERA+ as a pitcher across 86 career starts. That said, Ohtani has peaked at 28 starts in a single season and surpassed 20 starts just three times. He didn't pitch in 2019 due to an elbow injury.

Ohtani, who turns 30 in July, is a two-time American League MVP, two-time Silver Slugger, three-time All-Star and was the 2018 AL Rookie of the Year.

On the other hand, Ruth primarily served as a starting pitcher for the Boston Red Sox from 1914-19, while gradually getting more plate appearances. After being bought by the New York Yankees for the 1920 season, Ruth became a full-time hitter and made just five appearances as a pitcher the rest of his career, which concluded after the 1935 season.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts on what makes Shohei Ohtani so special

As a pitcher, Ruth led MLB with a 1.75 ERA in 1916, threw 35 complete games in 1917 and posted an ERA south of three from 1915-19. In the latter half of his time with the Red Sox, Ruth both pitched and hit to an extensive degree, as he led the sport in runs, home runs and RBIs in 1919. That said, it came at the expense of Ruth's starts being cut in half, with him making just 19 starts in 1918 and 15 in 1919 after making 38-plus starts in 1916 and 1917.

Ruth led MLB in home runs in 10 seasons, was a seven-time World Series champion and is third in league history with 714 home runs over his 22-year career.

Ohtani and the Dodgers will be on display this coming Saturday when they face the Yankees in Yankee Stadium (7:35 p.m. ET on FOX and the FOX Sports app).

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