No way, Shohei! Ohtani throws one-hitter, homers twice in wild twin bill
Shohei
Ohtani has accomplished a lot in his six-year Major League career. One
of them is that if you believe he can't accomplish anything, you're
usually mistaken.
The
Angels' two-way superstar shone again on Thursday, pitching his first
career shutout (a one-hitter) in a 6-0 win against the Tigers in Game 1
of a doubleheader at Comerica Park, and then smashing his Major
League-leading 37th and 38th home runs in an 11-4 victory in Game 2.
Ohtani
walked three batters and struck out eight in his complete-game
performance, cajoling Riley Greene to line out to centre field to seal
the victory. Kerry Carpenter's single to lead off the fifth inning was
his only hit.
In Game 1, Ohtani threw 111 pitches and batted five
times. He then spoke with the reporters, changed fast, and ran to the
dugout for a nightcap without pausing. After getting a feel for starter
Matt Manning in his first at-bat, Ohtani went to the plate in the second
inning and hit on a four-seamer that exited his bat at 107.6 mph.
"He
was the story of both games," A.J. Hinch, the Tigers' manager, said.
"In both games, he was the best player on the field." We saw him at his
best on both sides."
Which side impressed Hinch the most?
"I don't have to pick," he explained. "[Ohtani is] the best at both, and he showed us in person."
When
was the last time a pitcher pitched a shutout and homered on the same
day? According to MLB.com research guru Sarah Langs, on June 8, 1986,
Expos starter Floyd Youmans allowed one hit, struck out eight, walked
seven, and hit his first home run of the season against a guy called
Maddux (Mike, not Greg) in the second inning of a 12-0 win.
Ohtani's
accomplishment took two games to Youmans' one, and he took Manning deep
again in the fourth inning, this time a two-out solo homer with a 116.9
mph exit velocity.
"Guy has 40 homers for a reason," remarked
Manning. "He probably had the best baseball day anyone has ever seen
today." It was amazing. I'm proud of myself for not running away from
it. I went after him even though I was behind in the count. Please tip
your hat. That's all there is to it."
Ohtani's 16th multihomer
game of his career, and his fourth of the season. He is just the second
player since at least 1900 to pitch a complete-game shutout, allowing no
more than one hit, and homer twice in the same game, joining Rick Wise,
who accomplished the feat on June 23, 1971, while throwing a no-hitter.
"His uniqueness merits all the respect in the world," Hinch added.
Ohtani
departed Game 2 before the seventh inning with cramps, but manager Phil
Nevin claimed it was merely due to the long, humid day and that Ohtani
will DH in Toronto on Friday.
Ohtani's latest grand slam occurred
on a day when he was supposed to take it easy, which meant "just" DHing
for nine innings. The right-hander was scheduled to start Friday's
series opener in Toronto, but when bad weather forced the teams to
combine Wednesday's game into a Thursday doubleheader, the Angels
elected to push up Ohtani's start as well.
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