Shohei Ohtani (Angels) suffered his first loss of the season in eight games. In the fifth inning, the middle fingernail of his right hand was slightly chipped and his condition was checked. It is a situation where it can be said that the 3 runs in the 5th inning were affected by the fingernails, but Ohtani did not make an excuse, saying, “It was okay to throw.”
Ohtani started the game against the Houston Astros on the 10th (Korean time) and recorded 6 hits (1 home run), 2 walks, 7 strikeouts and 3 runs in 7 innings. As the team lost 1-3, it was Ohtani’s first loss of the year. His earned run average, which was 2.54, rose to 2.74.
In the 5th inning, he was allowed three consecutive single hits on a walk and a home run, and three runs were taken away at once. Ohtani said that this concentration strike was not due to a problem with his fingernails.
In an interview after the game, when asked if his fingernails were broken in the middle of pitching, Ohtani said, “It was originally a little cracked.” answered. In this condition, he broke Babe Ruth’s 501 career strikeout record with 507 strikeouts.
He usually pitches sweeper, four-seam fastball, and splitter, but in this game, he increased the weight of sinker (two-seam fastball). The 103 pitches thrown on the 10th consisted of 40 pitches for the sweeper, 32 pitches for the sinker, 26 four-seam pitches, 3 pitches for the cutter, 1 pitch for the splitter, and 1 pitch for classification failure. Ohtani explained, “It was one of the game plans. We decided in advance how the game would be played, and it is one of those plans.” 메이저사이트
Regarding the first battery collaboration with catcher Chris Okie, “I think the relationship of trust is the most important. It is difficult for catchers to catch a ball they have never seen before. I will try my best,” he said.
Regarding the fact that he was pushed back in the pitching match, he cited the fact that he failed to hit as a loss. Ohtani went 0-for-3 on the day, ending his hitting streak at 11 games in a start. He only got on base once due to catcher hit obstruction.
Ohtani said, “Of course, the opposing pitcher was great. Still, there were a few missed pitches, but if I survived the bat, I would have had a chance to win. The process at bat was worse than pitching,” he regretted. It was a mindset that only pitchers can have.