Shohei Ohtani's Pitching Debut: More Than Just Fastballs

In a recent game, Shohei Ohtani showcased a different side of himself on the mound for the Dodgers. His first pitch as a Dodger was a 97. 6-mph fastball. He averaged 99. 1 mph with his four-seam fastball and 97. 4 mph with his sinker. He was clocked at 100. 2 mph against Luis Arraez and 99. 9 against Manny Machado. That was considerably faster than Ohtani threw in live batting practice and considerably faster than the Dodgers were expecting him to throw in this game. He threw 13 pitches at 98 mph or faster. His fastballs were fast, but his control was off. It was clear that Ohtani was more intense on the mound than at the plate. He was more nervous than when he is just a hitter. His performance reflected that. In the one inning he pitched as an opener, he was charged with a run and two hits. He threw 28 pitches, of which only 16 were strikes. His arm was moving a little too fast. Pitches were going more to the glove side than he anticipated. He was more animated than usual. He was more emotional, even downright combative at times. He pointed his glove at Gibson. He screamed. He turned his head in the direction of the Dodgers dugout, waving his glove as if to urge the bench to challenge the call. He was more in control when he retired Xander Bogaerts for the final out of the inning. He pointed to the at-bat as a highlight. He said, \I was able to relax and pitch. \

Ohtani started by attacking him with a sweeper that was called for a strike. He followed that up with a 95. 6-mph sinker that missed low, but forced Bogaerts to ground out for the third out on another sinker, this one on the inside half of the plate. That pitch was 95. 4 mph. He was more in control when he retired Xander Bogaerts for the final out of the inning. After that, Ohtani strapped on protective gear and slipped on batting gloves while standing on the railing in front of the Dodgers’ bench. As a hitter, he finished the game two for four with a walk, two runs scored and two runs batted in. In the batter’s box and on the basepaths, his demeanor softened. By the time he reached third base in the Dodgers’ five-run fourth inning, he was sharing laughs with Machado. Ohtani's pitching style is more serious than his hitting. He treats pitching as work, and hitting is what he does for fun. He was amped up to return to the mound. He wanted to be around 95-96 as much as possible.

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