Ohtani Returns to Japan after 5th MLB Season

Tokyo, Oct. 18 (Jiji Press)--Two-way star Shohei Ohtani said his fifth season in the Major League Baseball had been good as he returned to Japan Tuesday.

"Personally speaking, I had a good season like in the previous year. I'll work hard with a good goal toward next year," he told reporters upon arrival at Tokyo's Haneda airport.

Ohtani became the first MLB player to qualify for league leaders both as a pitcher and a hitter in the same season.

He recorded 15 wins and nine losses as a pitcher, and hit 34 home runs, becoming the first MLB player to achieve double-digit wins and home runs in a single season since Babe Ruth in 1918.

Ohtani said he has not made a decision on whether to join the Japanese national team for the World Baseball Classic in March next year.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]