The news of Shohei Ohtani winning his second Most Valuable Player Award in the last 3 seasons was anything but a surprise. The two-way Los Angeles Angels superstar had a brilliant season with the bat from start to finish and dominated as a pitcher until a torn ulnar collateral ligament took him off the mound in late August.

Ohtani was interviewed on the MLB Network after the announcement was made, and he explained that he was motivated to win the award this year after finishing second in the MVP race last year to Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees.

“I wanted to come back even stronger this year and win it,” Ohtani said through his interpreter. “My rivals, (Marcus) Semien and (Corey) Seager, had great seasons and I congratulate them for winning the World Series. My goal was to come out on top and this kind of pays it off.”

Ohtani was also asked about his rehab following surgery on his elbow. “My rehab is going great so far,” he explained. “But I can't rush anything. I have to go through all the steps so I can come back strong next year.”

Ohtani slashed .304/.412/.654 with 44 homers, 26 doubles, eight triples, 20 stolen bases, 102 runs scored and 95 RBIs in 135 games.

As a pitcher, Shohei Ohtani went 10-5 with a 3.14 ERA and 167 strikeouts in 23 starts and 132 innings. Opposing batters hit just .183 against him, and he struck out 11.4 batters per 9 inning on the mound.

He received all 30 first-place votes in the MVP race and he is now the most valued free agent in Major League Baseball history.