Everything was going well for Shohei Ohtani. The Angels pitcher had given nothing in the first inning against the dynamic Cincinnati Reds.
Then, as a hitter, he hit a two-run homer, his 44th of the season.
But the problem is that afterwards, things went wrong for the launcher. In the second inning, the pitcher left the mound of his people.
We didn’t really know why, but the Angels finally announced that fatigue (of his arm) explains his early start after only four outs (1.1 innings). He also stopped hitting.
What was shaping up to be another magical day at Shohei Ohtani ended up being bad news. For what?
Because the pitcher had already asked to skip his last start. So he hadn’t pitched since August 9 and he wasn’t able to go more than 1.1 innings.
It’s too bad for the pitcher, of course… and it’s dramatic for the Angels, who are fighting for a playoff spot – without success.
I told you that overcoming fatigue was going to be the big challenge for the rest of his career.
The short-term problem is that the Angels need him to make the playoffs and MLB needs him for marketing.
And that’s not counting his health.
The other problem? As a free agent, do you think teams are going to start hesitating about giving him a 10-year paid contract as a pitcher and hitter?
The question must arise at this point.
- Already a circuit for Paul DeJong.
- Oneil Cruz is not recovering well from his injury.
