Aaron Judge, the slugger who leads the majors in batting average, and Shohei Ohtani, who have combined to win five of the last eight Most Valuable Player awards, are lapping the rest of Major League Baseball in the first batch of All-Star Game balloting.

Shohei Ohtani could return to a major league mound in the next two weeks but Los Angeles Dodgers rookie right-hander Roki Sasaki has paused his throwing program and is set for a lengthy layoff.

In the last season that he pitched in 2023, Ohtani had a 3.13 ERA, a 1.06 WHIP and a 10-5 record, helping him earn a second AL MVP.

Along with his time spent in prison, U.S. District Judge John W. Holcomb ordered Mizuhara to pay $1.1 million to the IRS.

Ohtani will make his Dodgers pitching debut Monday against the San Diego Padres.

Ohtani has since thrown two more live sessions. Even Sunday afternoon, Roberts said he wasn’t sure exactly when Ohtani’s highly anticipated pitching return would come.