Shohei Ohtani (29-LA Angels) pitched his worst start of the season in his 12th start of the year. Everything about it was bad, except for the fact that he got through an inning.
Ohtani served as the team’s leadoff hitter and starting pitcher for the Angels’ 2023 Major League Baseball (MLB) opener against the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas, USA, on March 3.
From the first inning, Ohtani was shaky. He gave up an infield single to Jeremy Peña in the first inning, followed by a throwing error that allowed a runner to steal second base. Then, with Jordan Alvarez batting third, he threw a wild pitch that the catcher couldn’t catch, allowing a runner to advance to third, and then threw an errant sweeper to Alvarez for a two-run homer.
After the early blow, Ohtani appeared to be back on track in the bottom of the second, retiring the first three batters he faced. However, in the bottom of the fourth, he gave up three straight hits with two outs and the bases loaded, and was able to induce a grounder to first base to get out of the inning unscathed.
However, Ohtani would eventually break down in the middle of the game. In the fifth, he put runners in scoring position with two outs on a walk and a single, then gave up a single to Alex Bregman in left field.
Ohtani added another run in the sixth inning. He walked Chas McCormick to load the bases and then gave up a two-run homer to Corey Jenks over the left-center field fence. It was Ohtani’s 10th homer of the season.안전놀이터
Ohtani retired the side in order in the sixth. On the day, Ohtani allowed five runs on nine hits (two home runs) in six innings with one walk and six strikeouts. His season ERA jumped from 2.91 to 3.30. Ohtani gave up his most runs and most hits of the season. It was his worst pitching performance of the season.
At the plate, Ohtani went 1-for-4 with a walk and two strikeouts. He did manage to get on base in the eighth inning, but was thrown out at the plate on a Mike Trout double.
The Angels fell to Houston, 2-6, as the trusty Ohtani collapsed, giving the Angels a two-run lead in the eighth inning but not enough to win.