Shohei Ohtani (29, Los Angeles Angels) hit his 44th home run to become the major league home run leader. However, he was removed from the mound after just 1.1 innings and appears to be showing his physical limitations.
Ohtani was the starting pitcher and No. 2 designated hitter in Game 1 of a doubleheader against the Cincinnati Reds at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California, USA, on April 24. Ohtani got off to a flying start in the top of the first inning with a two-run arch, his 44th of the season.
In doing so, Ohtani further solidified his American League home run lead and moved into sole possession of the major league lead in home runs, passing Matt Olson of the Atlanta Braves, who has 43. Olson had gone eight games without a home run since his last one on April 14.
It was such a big home run that you knew it was a home run the moment it hit the bat. Ohtani took a 93 mph (149.6 km/h) fastball from opposing starter left-hander Andrew Abbott for a two-run homer. It was a huge home run with a distance of 134.7 meters and a bat speed of 186 km/h.
But Tutaniro exposed the anomaly and came off the mound after getting Joey Votto to pop out to shortstop with the bases loaded in the second inning. On the day, Ohtani’s four-seam fastball touched 94 mph (151.2 km/h). That’s a significant difference from the early-to-mid-season stretch when he easily topped 100 mph (160 km/h).
The Angels announced that “Ohtani was removed from the game due to arm fatigue,” and the broadcast crew also cited “arm fatigue” as a reason. It’s now been about a month since we’ve seen him in action.
Ohtani’s last pitch as a pitcher was 10 days ago. He pitched six innings against the San Francisco Giants, allowing one run (unearned) on three hits with five strikeouts. He was pulled from one start last week after the manager and coaching staff realized that fatigue had set in. 안전놀이터
As a hitter, he was unexpectedly replaced early. Ohtani was replaced by Nolan Chanuel in the bottom of the third inning to end the first game of the doubleheader. The team’s announcement raised concerns that there was something wrong with his body.
While Ohtani is having a breakout season, the Angels are in fourth place in the American League West, and their fall baseball hopes are dwindling. There have been concerns that Ohtani’s fatigue level may be too high as he tries to rebound from this situation.
We’ll find out as early as game two of the doubleheader if Ohtani has reached his physical limit.