Baseball: Shohei Ohtani receives rookie honor, praised as pioneer

Slugging Los Angeles Angels pitcher Shohei Ohtani was hailed as a pioneer when he received his American League Rookie of the Year Award on Saturday and then gave his acceptance speech in English.The awards ceremony is sponsored by the Baseball Writers Association of America and takes place at a dinner in New York. The Most Valuable Player, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year and Manager of the Year awards are handed out by the BBWAA, whose members take part in the voting.Ohtani's parents traveled from Japan to attend, as did a contingent from the Angels, including general manager Billy Eppler, who…READ FULL ARTICLE