Beyond the Flag
Fansided

Indy 500: 10 non-racing driver athletes who should race in the Indianapolis 500

By Asher Fair

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MAY 28: Drivers pull away from the grid ahead of the start of the 101st running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motorspeedway on May 28, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MAY 28: Drivers pull away from the grid ahead of the start of the 101st running of the Indianapolis 500 at Indianapolis Motorspeedway on May 28, 2017 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
10 of 12
Next
ANAHEIM, CA – APRIL 04: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images)
ANAHEIM, CA – APRIL 04: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) /

Shohei Ohtani

SHOHEI OHTANI. 23. . No. 17, Pitcher/Outfielder. Los Angeles Angels

Shohei Ohtani, 23, is an outfielder and a pitcher for the Los Angeles Angels of the MLB. He has played for the Angels since making his MLB debut earlier this season. As both a pitcher and an outfielder, Ohtani is a one-of-a-kind player.

So far this season, his rookie season, as a batter, Ohtani is 24 for 69 (.348 batting average) with five home runs, 16 runs batted in and 11 runs scored.

So far this season as a pitcher, his record is 3-1 and he has posted an ERA of 4.10 and a WHIP of 1.18. Through 26 and one-third innings pitched, he has struck out 32 batters.

With Takuma Sato winning last year’s Indianapolis 500 in his #26 Andretti Autosport Honda and becoming the first Japanese driving to ever win the “Greatest Spectacle in Racing”, there would be no better athlete to drive in the race than the one-of-a-kind Japanese baseball player, Shohei Ohtani.

In fact, Sato and Ohtani got to meet one another at an Angels game just several days before the second race of the 2018 IndyCar season at ISM Raceway in Avondale, Arizona back in early April.

https://twitter.com/Angels/status/981337898820579335

Ohtani can hit and he can pitch, so I wouldn’t bet against him driving, although it may be challenging for him to fit in an IndyCar since he stands 6’4″ and weighs 203 pounds.