He was a “historic” player. He was having a great season. Injuries slowed him down. His value seems to be plummeting. There was talk of $500 million, then $600 million, but now it seems like a long shot. This is the story of Shohei Ohtani (29) of the Los Angeles Angels.
Ohtani was placed on the 15-day disabled list on Sunday. Through 18 days, the Angels are 68-82 with a .453 winning percentage and fourth place in the American League West. They are one game out of the postseason. The Angels have also released several players, effectively ending their season.
Ohtani’s 2023 season is over. He was diagnosed with a torn ligament in his right elbow in August. He is expected to undergo elbow ligament reconstruction (Tommy John surgery).
However, he continued to bat. He played until September 4. He said he’d be back soon, but that was easier said than done. He couldn’t play anymore because of a problem in his side.
On the 16th, he even removed all his belongings from the locker room. A day later, on the 17th, he was placed on the injured list. Out for the season. Ohtani will become a free agent at the end of the season.
He was arguably the best player in the league this season. In 23 games and 132 innings pitched, he went 10-5 with 167 strikeouts and a 3.14 ERA. Despite not pitching a complete game, he struck out 11.39 batters per nine innings. He used a fiery fastball, forkball, and sweeper to keep hitters off balance.
Ohtani is also a very good hitter. In 135 games, he batted .304 with 44 homers, 95 RBIs, 102 runs scored, a .412 on-base percentage, a .654 slugging percentage, and a 1.066 OPS. He hit 40 homers for the second time in two years. He’s the favorite to win the American League home run title. 토토사이트
Plus, he tripled for the first time in his big league career. He went 3-4-6 instead of 3-4-5 with a triple, slugging percentage, and on-base percentage. With five more RBIs, he could have been a 30-40 HR, 100 RBI, 100 run hitter.
Despite ending his season prematurely, he was the strongest MVP candidate in the American League this season. If he finishes in first place, he will become the first Japanese and Asian to win the home run title.