His first surgery was on 10/1/18, the day after the season needed. He didn’t announce beforehand the date, but his agent gave the results afterwards, stating Shohei wanted to be playing ASAP. He missed ST but did his ramp up in April and was DH by May 2019. Pitching took longer, with only two starts in pandemic 2020, neither of them good. That is what made the MVP year in 2021 so remarkable, because some thought his days on the mound might be done. His ability to confound expectations of others is still off the charts.
His first surgery was on 10/1/18, the day after the season needed. He didn’t announce beforehand the date, but his agent gave the results afterwards, stating Shohei wanted to be playing ASAP. He missed ST but did his ramp up in April and was DH by May 2019. Pitching took longer, with only two starts in pandemic 2020, neither of them good. That is what made the MVP year in 2021 so remarkable, because some thought his days on the mound might be done. His ability to confound expectations of others is still off the charts.