Pete Crow-Armstrong and Shohei Ohtani are undoubtedly two of the most exciting players in baseball.
The ever-humble Crow-Armstrong probably wouldn’t say that about himself, but he had nothing but praise for the reigning National League MVP after the two shared a dugout for the first time during Tuesday’s MLB All-Star Game.
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“I admire the heck out of Shohei,” Crow-Armstrong told reporters at Truist Park after his shift as the NL’s starting center fielder. “I think he exudes the most joy that I’ve been around on a baseball field. He is, in my opinion, a top-two player in this league.”
Ohtani (who led off the game for the NL) and Crow-Armstrong (who hit ninth) each notched hits in their first at-bats of the Midsummer Classic.
Ohtani punched a single the other way off of Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal, while Crow-Armstrong came up in the second inning and turned on New York Yankees lefty Carlos Rodón’s offering to rope a double down the right field line.
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At the season’s arbitrary midway point, the Dodgers’ Japanese superstar leads the NL in home runs with 32. He’s also gotten back on the mound after surgery kept him away from pitching for all of last year — and in doing so, he has a 1.00 ERA with 10 strikeouts in nine innings. It’s the kind of magic that even a rising star like Crow-Armstrong has to stop and marvel at.
“I love the moments where he makes you feel like he’s a man amongst boys,” Crow-Armstrong said of Ohtani. “And then he comes back in the dugout and he’s just goofy, keeps it super light and regular. With all of the stuff that comes with being him, I just respect the way he goes about his business and the respect he shows everybody else.”