Los Angeles Angels' Shohei Ohtani is greeted in the dugout after he hit a solo home run during the first inning of a baseball game against the Seattle Mariners, on Oct. 3, 2021, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Ted S. Warren)

       Los Angeles (Kyodo) -- Tributes continued to pour in for Shohei Ohtani on Thursday, when American website Sporting News named the Los Angeles Angels two-way star its "Athlete of the Year."

       Ohtani hit 46 home runs while being one of Major League Baseball's better pitchers. The honor comes after the Associated Press named him "Male Athlete of the Year" on Wednesday, and Sporting News declaring Ohtani's 2021 the greatest individual season in sports history the week before.

       "What the norm-slaying, jaw-dropping, quasi-superhero unanimous AL MVP did this year for the Angels, and for baseball at large, was so amazing that it makes the debate over which athletes had the best season barely worth having. That's why he's the easy choice for The Sporting News' 2021 Athlete of the Year," wrote Sporting News MLB editor Jason Foster.

       In addition to his home runs, Ohtani both drove in and scored 100-plus runs, led the American League in triples and went 9-2 on the mound with a 3.18 ERA, striking out 156 batters in just over 130 innings.

       The story included a May 19 tweet from MLB pitcher Marcus Stroman.

       "Ohtani is a mythical legend in human form. What he's doing is beyond incredible. Everyone in the big leagues is in awe of his talent. After games, I be running to my phone to check and see what Ohtani did on the night," tweeted Stroman.

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