Will 2024 be Shohei Ohtani’s best season ever?

TOKYO — In 1974, Lou Brock stole 118 bases, an all-time modern record. In 1982, Rickey Henderson broke that record with 130. No one had stolen that many bases since Hugh Nicol had 138 back in 1887, the pre-historic era of Major League Baseball when walks were counted as hits.

But neither man was particularly big nor a power hitter. Brock (180 cm 77 kg) hit only three home runs that season, while Henderson (178 cm 81 kg) had 10. Nicol was a mere 163 cm and 65 kg and hit but one home run in that 1887 season. Put into this kind of context, the magnitude of Shohei Ohtani’s 2024 season becomes immense — 59 stolen bases, 54 home runs.