Shohei Ohtani (29) of the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim celebrates a spectacular home run.
Ohtani went 1-for-3 with a home run, a double, a home run, two RBIs, two runs scored and a walk while batting second against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California, USA, on 24 April. The Angels went on to win 7-5 behind Ohtani’s performance.
With the Angels down 1-0 in the bottom of the first inning, Ohtani took a 92.2-mile-per-hour (148.4 km/h) seven-pitch cutter from Pittsburgh starter Mitch Keller for a tiebreaking solo home run. It was his 36th of the season. The pitch hit 112.9 mph (181.7 km/h) and traveled 410 feet (125 metres). It had a launch angle of just 19 degrees.바카라사이트
MLB.com reported, “The Angels were frustrated by their fourth scoreless loss of the season last game. Ohtani, a two-hit star, moved quickly to prevent that from happening for the second straight game.”
After watching Ohtani’s incredible home run, manager Phil Nevin said, “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a home run fly like that. Probably a golf ball flies like that. I thought he was going to hit it straight up the middle. I really thought so. Or I thought it would go over the head of the centre fielder or directly into the fence. But instead, Ohtani’s pitch disappeared into the trees. He surprises you every day in a new way,” he said.
Ohtani, who is eligible for free agency after this season, has been the subject of constant trade rumours. Still, the Angels have kept their postseason hopes alive with a 51-49 record and a winning percentage of over .500. They are eight games behind first-place Texas (59-41) in the American League West and four games behind third-place Toronto (55-45) for the wild card. Most local media outlets believe Ohtani will be traded as the Angels’ chances of making the postseason become slimmer.
“We had a great game at home,” Nevin said. The players responded well to the fan support. Everyone understands that everything is still in front of us,” Nevin said, emphasising that the team will continue to challenge for a postseason berth until the end.