It's unfair to compare anyone to Shohei Ohtani. But if anyone deserves the moniker of "American Ohtani," it just might be Bryce Eldridge.
What Ohtani is doing in the majors is something baseball has never seen. Not even from Babe Ruth, who previously was the sport's most distinct two-way player. But Ruth only once in his career hit more than 20 home runs while making double-digit starts on the mound. Ohtani has now done it four times in six MLB seasons. Needless to say, being a successful two-way player does not happen easily.
But Eldridge could potentially be the next to do it. The Virginia prep standout is one of the 2023 MLB Draft's best high school hitters, with tons of raw power in his 6-7, 223-pound frame, and one of its best pitching prospects, wielding a fastball that can reach the mid-90s to go with a wipeout slider and advanced feel.
On Sunday, he will be one of the first players taken in the draft. He is expected to be taken no later than the 20s and could go somewhere in the teens. And depending on the team that drafts him, there's a chance he will be given the opportunity to be a two-way player in the minor leagues.
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Only a few organizations have tried to develop two-way players. The Rays allowed Brendan McKay to continue hitting and pitching, though his career has been marred by injuries. The Giants have tested having last year's first-round pick Reggie Crawford take swings and throw off the mound in his first season of pro ball.
Eldridge has shown the ability to do both at a high level; the question will be whether the team that selects him will allow him to do both as part of his development.
Here's what you need to know about the player nicknamed the "American Ohtani."
Who is Bryce Eldridge?
Eldridge is a right-handed pitcher and left-handed hitting first baseman for Madison High in Vienna, Va.
The Washington Post reported on the stories of Eldridge's baseball exploits. Stories like him launching three home runs in a game at 10 years old, and throwing harder as a 10-year-old than any 13-year-old in the nation. One home run was rumored to have gone over 600 feet.
"I’ve never quite seen a guy who’s that size do the things that he’s done," a National League scout told the Post. "He's an incredibly unique talent. . . . If we're lucky enough to select him, he's going to go out as a two-way guy. He'll be given every chance to play every day on both sides of the ball."
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That ability to do both at a high level was on display throughout his high school career. He helped lead Madison to a state title his sophomore year, and he made the Team USA under-18 World Cup roster in 2023. With Team USA, he hit .316 with three home runs and 13 RBIs and allowed one hit over three innings while pitching, per the Post, and was named tournament MVP.
Bryce Eldridge: hits go-ahead double 👏
— USA Baseball 18U (@USABaseball18U) September 17, 2022
Also Bryce Eldridge: strikes out the side to earn the save 😱@BryceEldridge2 | #ForGlory🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/dZmzrQPoVy
It's no wonder, then, that he has received comparisons to Ohtani.
"That whole comparison — yeah, it's pretty cool," Eldridge told the Post. "He's the only guy who’s been able to do it in the league at a high level. He proved it was possible. I'm going to keep doing both until someone makes me drop the glove or the bat."
And his high school coach, Mark Gjormand, told the Post the Eldridge wants to do more than just live up to the nickname. He wants to surpass it.
"He doesn't just want to be a major league player; he wants to be the best major league player," Gjormand said. "He gets compared to Ohtani — he wants to be better than Ohtani. People may go, 'That’s cocky, that’s arrogant.' No, that is just the truth. He’s striving for that."
But not everyone can handle the workload of both hitting and pitching over a full professional baseball schedule, and the organization that drafts Eldridge would need to manage it. Though Eldridge has the mobility to play the outfield, Madison High had him play first base to limit how much he had to throw when he wasn't pitching.
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Ohtani has the frame that can handle that workload, coming in at 6-4 and 210 pounds. Eldridge thinks his frame should give him an advantage.
"The frame I have, I think, can handle it," Eldridge told MLB.com. "Obviously I’ve got to put on some more weight here. But getting into a big league system that can help me develop, I think it’s going to be really cool to see how it all plays out."
And with Ohtani having already laid the groundwork for how to do it, Eldridge said he can see a path to being the next great two-way talent.
"I just want to ask [Ohtani] what he eats, how much sleep he gets, what does he do to recover," Eldridge told MLB.com. "At that level, I don’t know everything that goes into that. Just being able to talk to him and see what his life and routines are like would be really beneficial for me."
Bryce Eldridge stats
Eldridge put up big numbers his senior season en route to winning the Gatorade Virginia Baseball Player of the Year and becoming a finalist for the Gatorade National Player of the Year.
Per Rivals, he posted a 1.716 OPS, with a .422 batting average, eight home runs and 23 RBIs. On the mound, he was 9-0 with a 1.06 ERA, 66 strikeouts and eight walks in 39 2/3 innings.
Bryce Eldridge mock drafts
Just about every mock draft has Eldridge as a first-round pick, with one having him go as high as No. 19 to the Rays.
Eldridge told MLB.com he has been in contact with several teams, and that while some are uncertain about whether to try him out as a two-way player, others are ready to give him a shot at trying to be the next Ohtani.
"To be honest, there are some teams that have said, 'We don't have a plan, we don’t know how to handle it, it’s not going to work for us,'" Eldridge told MLB.com. "There are others that have said, 'We love it, this is a good challenge for us.' What I hear most from teams is that they're going to let it play out. Maybe, at some point, I’ll be batting .370 in Double-A with a 9.00 ERA — or vice versa — and I’ll have to drop one or the other. Who knows? But I think most teams are very open to the idea."
Here's where he is projected to go in various mock drafts:
- SN: No. 28 to Astros
- The Athletic: No. 23 to Guardians
- Baseball America: No. 37 to Tigers
- MLB Pipeline: No. 19 to Rays