'SHOTIME' LEAVES EVERYONE IN AWE

He hails team effort despite brilliant display to take Dodgers back to the World Series

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Shohei Ohtani's otherworldly performance that propelled the Los Angeles Dodgers back to the World Series has left the sporting world in awe, with players and legends alike marvelling at what may have been the greatest single-game display in Major League Baseball (MLB) history.

In a masterpiece on Oct 17 night, the 31-year-old flashed his dominance on both sides of the ball hitting three home runs and pitching six scoreless innings while striking out 10 batters as the Dodgers won 5-1 to complete a four-game sweep of the Milwaukee Brewers in clinching the National League Championship Series (NLCS).

"This is Beethoven at a piano. This is Shakespeare with a quill. This is Michael Jordan in the Finals. This is Tiger Woods in Sunday red," Washington Post writer Chelsea Janes wrote of Ohtani's masterpiece.

"This is the beginning of every baseball conversation and the end of the debate: Shohei Ohtani is the best baseball player who has ever played the game."

ESPN's commentator Jeff Passan said Ohtani was "redefining the game in real time".

"It was the kind of night that leaves patrons elated they saw it and also just a little ruined because they know they'll never see anything like it again," he added.