Shohei Ohtani, 30, of the Los Angeles Dodgers, will finally play his first fall baseball game in the Major League. The San Diego Padres, the opposing team, also seem to have no intention of avoiding the game against Ohtani. As the batters are unavoidable even if they want to, they are forced to go head-to-head.
The Dodgers, which includes Ohtani, will start the fall baseball against the San Diego Padres in Game 1 of the National League Division Series (NLDS) of the 2024 Major League Postseason at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California on the 6th (Korea time). The San Diego Padres beat the Atlanta Braves with two consecutive wins in the wild card series to advance to the Division Series.
It is his debut game in fall baseball for Otani, who will be the designated hitter. He played for the Los Angeles Angels for six years from 2018 to last year, but he will taste fall baseball, which he has never experienced before, starting in his first year after moving to the Dodgers.
When Ohtani was asked at an official press conference on the 5th, “It’s my first postseason, are you nervous?” he immediately answered “Nope” without going through an interpreter, drawing laughter. “It’s been my dream since I was young to play in important games and important situations. I feel more excited than ever,” he said.
The San Diego Padres, which became the superstar’s first postseason opponent, also had questions about Ohtani. “Ohtani is a great player, and he is having a historic year,” San Diego coach Mike Shildt said after smiling about how to deal with Ohtani. “But we have a plan and I’m confident that we will be able to implement it.”
We have to watch the game situation, but we can’t avoid Ohtani without hesitation. Other MVP hitters, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman, are waiting in the second and third batting order. “We have two MVP hitters right behind Ohtani. Betts is also a batter who doesn’t care about left and right pitchers,” Shildt said. “It’s not easy to put a left-hander in Ohtani’s batter’s box.”
Ohtani was weaker to left-handed pitchers than right-handed ones. He posted a batting average of 322 percent against right-handed ones with an OPS of 1.128 this season, while his performance declines to 288 percent against left-handed ones with an OPS of .867. The San Diego bullpen has many good left-handers including Tanner Scott, a top-rated relief pitcher with an earned run average of 1.75 points, Adrian Morehorn, Yuki Matsui, and Wandy Peralta.
However, Ohtani showed strength in the San Diego left-hander’s bullpen by posting five hits in five at-bats against Matsui, two hits in three at-bats against Morehon, and one hit in two at-bats against Scott and Peralta. Above all, Ohtani has a mandatory three-batter opponent’s rule, and right-handed pitcher Betts is right behind him, making it difficult to deploy left-handers hastily. As Ohtani cannot be avoided, he is forced to engage in a head-to-head match. 먹튀검증
Shildt said, “We have a lot of good left-handed pitchers in Otani, and we have a lot of good left-handed pitchers in our team. But I like competition. I don’t like running away. Otani is a very good player, but I believe in our players. It depends on the situation, but I’m sure our players have the ability to put Otani out.”
Dylan Shees, who was expected to be the starting pitcher in the first round of the San Diego Padres, allowed two homers, although he allowed two homers with a batting average of 267 (4 hits in 15 at-bats) and five strikeouts in his career showdown with Ohtani. In the game on the 26th of last month, which was the most recent showdown, Ohtani had multiple on-base hits with a walk, a rookie strikeout, and a RBI double on the right side, showing his dominance over Shees.
“Otani is definitely a good hitter. When he comes to bat, he has to try not to throw it into the middle,” Sizu said. “I don’t want to elaborate. He is definitely a good hitter. I try to attack with a high level of concentration. If you passively pitch and give a walk or lose the count fight, you will fail. Baseball is a challenge. It is a difficult task, but we have to overcome and overcome the situation.”
