Ohtani looks good at plate, on mound in same game
PEORIA, ARIZ. » Shohei Ohtani took being a twoway player to a new level in the major leagues on Sunday.
Ohtani started on the mound and hit leadoff for the Angels in their Cactus League game against the Padres, the first time since he came to the majors that he’d pitched and hit in a regular season or exhibition game.
Although pitchers hit routinely in the same game in the National League, they don’t hit leadoff, and they aren’t expected to contribute at the plate the way Ohtani is.
Ohtani had two hits and a walk at the plate and five strikeouts in four innings on the mound, at one point hitting 102 mph. He gave up one run.
“Truly outstanding,” manager Joe Maddon said. “He played a complete game. Great at-bats. He was really good on the mound.”
It was yet another chapter in what has been a sensational spring for Ohtani, giving Angels fans — and baseball fans in general — reason to believe they will finally see Ohtani at his full potential this year.
“I’m very excited to show what I can do,” Ohtani said through his interpreter after leaving Sunday’s game. “That’s why I came here back in 2018. I’m sure I disappointed a lot of people the last two years by being hurt. I am looking forward to showing everyone what I’m capable of.”
Ohtani has barely pitched since June 2018, when he suffered the elbow injury that led to Tommy John surgery. With Ohtani now fully healthy and coming off a winter in which he upgraded his workouts and preparation, the Angels have taken off the training wheels, so to speak.
The restrictions they placed on him in previous years are gone. Maddon didn’t want to lose Ohtani’s bat for three days in a row so he wanted to try having Ohtani hit on the day he pitches.
“If you have to shut him down for three games — the day before (he pitches), the day of, and the day after — woof, that’s a bad thought,” Maddon said. “So it’s important that we experiment right now. Because it’s all about how he feels. It’s not about how I feel.”
Maddon had earlier this spring spoken about how he’d like to have Ohtani do this eventually, but Ohtani’s hot bat seemed to encourage him to try it sooner rather than later. Ohtani had 12 hits in 20 at-bats before Sunday, with four homers.
“We’ve been working towards this moment, where he felt good about where he was at pitching wise,” Maddon said. “And of course, he feels good with the swing. Just pop it out there and see what it looks like.”
It looked pretty good on Sunday.
Ohtani singled against former Cy Young winner Blake Snell, a lefty, and roped a hit off the fence in left-center against righthander Mark Melancon. Ohtani would have had a double, but he came off the bag on his slide and was tagged out.
On the mound he hadn’t been as sharp in his first two games as he was on Sunday. In his 62-pitch outing, Ohtani’s fastball sat at 94-96 mph consistently. At times he seemed to take something off to pitch at 92-93.
He also cranked it up, like when he hit 102 mph when facing Fernando Tatis Jr. with two on and one out in the third inning. He hit 100 mph with another pitch to Jurrickson Profar. Ohtani’s penultimate pitch of the afternoon was 98 mph.
“He definitely has another gear when the other team is threatening,” Maddon said. “There is another level of all his pitches. It’s just a matter of him figuring out how to get to that point a little more consistently to not put himself in that position. He definitely has another gear when it gets hot.”
Perhaps it’s coincidence, but the two innings in which Ohtani set the Padres down 1-2-3 were the two innings in which he had not been on base in the top of the inning. He finished the first and third innings on base, and it was in those innings that the Padres had all their baserunners against him.
The level of fatigue Ohtani feels from doing both roles on the same day will certainly be the biggest issue in determining whether he continues to do it. Beyond the work he does during the game, he normally would have much more batting practice than a National League pitcher before a game. If Ohtani does that, it could affect his pitching. If he doesn’t, it could affect his hitting.
“I didn’t feel much extra fatigue or anything,” Ohtani said, adding that he just took about 10 minutes of batting practice at the Angels complex in Tempe before making the 30-minute trip to Peoria.
There’s also the strategic factor to consider. When Ohtani hits and pitches, the Angels forfeit the use of the DH for the entire game. Once Ohtani comes out of the game, they’d need to put the pitcher in the lineup.
With one game down, Ohtani is prepared to keep doing it.
“Yes, I would love to do this during the season,” he said. “If I could get my own run support for myself, that will give me extra confidence on the mound to be more aggressive.”
Rodriguez to the pen?
A couple days after Maddon said that prospects Chris Rodriguez and Reid Detmers would both get a look as candidates to break camp in the bullpen, he gave further detail on how the organization sees both.
Maddon said Rodriguez profiles more, even in the the long term, as a reliever, while they still want to stretch Detmers out as a starter.
“If you look at (Rodriguez) right now, he looks like a relief pitcher to me,” Maddon said. “But that doesn’t mean he can’t start. Just looking at the way he comes after you, the physical stuff, how intimidating he can be in the short term, it’s very interesting. I’ve not seen enough of him to know the other side of it.”
Injuries to Felix Peña and Aaron Slegers have created some uncertainty in the Angels bullpen, leading to questions about whether Rodriguez could make the team as a reliever, even though he’s pitched in just three games at Class-A in the past three years.
Detmers was just drafted last June.
Faith in Walsh
Jared Walsh is 5 for 27 this spring, without an extra base hit, but Maddon said he remains confident in Walsh get significant playing time at first base this season.
“I loved the swings yesterday, loved them,” Maddon said of Walsh’s 0-for-2 day on Saturday.
Although Walsh doesn’t have a significant big league sample size — his current status on the team is based mostly on a hot streak in September — Maddon said it’s still more than spring training.
“Guys that are doing really well in camp that haven’t done well in the past, be careful,” Maddon said. “Guys that aren’t doing well in camp that have done well in the past, be careful. So I don’t worry about stuff like that.”
Also
The Angels optioned Jo Adell, Kyle Keller, Matt Thaiss and Jose Suarez. None of them were expected to make the Opening Day roster. Adell, who struggled in his rookie season in 2020, has made some progress at the plate this spring, but has continued to have issues in the outfield.