We asked an AI if Shohei Ohtani is better than Babe Ruth (and it had the perfect answer)
We asked Google Bard AI who was better between Shohei Ohtani and Babe Ruth. It had an exceptional answer:
"It is difficult to say definitively whether Shohei Ohtani is better than Babe Ruth. Both players are all-time greats, and it is impossible to compare their careers directly, as they played in different eras."
It continued:
"Ruth played in the dead-ball era, from 1914 to 1935, when the ball was less lively and home runs were less common. He hit 714 home runs in his career, which is still the all-time record. Ruth was also a dominant pitcher in his early career, winning 94 games with a 2.28 ERA."
Bard believes that it may be too early to say who is truly better:
"Ohtani is a two-way player who has excelled as both a hitter and a pitcher in the modern era. He hit 46 home runs and had a 3.18 ERA in 2021, his first full season in the majors. Ohtani is the first player in over a century to hit 40 home runs and strike out 100 batters in a season. It is too early to say whether Ohtani will have a better career than Ruth. However, he is off to a great start, and he has the potential to be one of the greatest players in baseball history."
It even offered a table comparing the two players' career statistics:
AI is getting pretty detailed and this answer sums up how advanced it truly is.
Is Shohei Ohtani better than Babe Ruth?
In the case of Shohei Ohtani vs. Babe Ruth, the debate may never end. As Bard pointed out, the vast difference in eras makes a comparison very difficult. Will Ohtani eclipse 714 home runs? In all likelihood, that is an impossible feat.
However, Ohtani has and will do things Ruth never could. He's facing much better pitching than Ruth ever did and putting up incredible numbers. Ohtani might be the more impressive player at this point.
Ohtani is also likely to pitch more than Ruth did. Ruth accumulated 1,221.1 innings pitched. Ohtani is at 402 after just five seasons. Assuming he continues on the path he's on, he should be pitching for a very long time.
The difference in era favors Ruth. No pitcher is starting 41 games in 2023 like Ruth did in 1916. The competition was also worse, which makes Babe Ruth stand out.
Shohei Ohtani, on the other hand, isn't considered the best hitter of his day (by some) and isn't the best pitcher, either. That has more to do with the competition's talent than his own shortcomings.
In the end, this debate is impossible to settle, but Google AI Bard thinks it knows how to answer that question. Was it right?