Ohtani calls own pitches, K’s 10 in Angels loss

Published

2 years ago

March 31, 2023

admin

10:12 PM ET

Shohei Ohtani began the 2023 season with a twist: calling his own pitches through a PitchCom device hidden underneath his jersey near his left shoulder. The new look, with Ohtani appearing to jab at his armpit before each pitch, was the only departure from his usual dominance.

He threw six shutout innings against the Athletics in Oakland on Thursday night, striking out 10 and allowing just two hits. He was occasionally wild, walking three and throwing just 55 strikes in 93 pitches. And, in a familiar refrain, he left with a 1-0 lead in a game the Los Angeles Angels would go on to lose 2-1 after Oakland scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth off reliever Aaron Loup, who recorded just one out and called it “probably the most embarrassing outing of my career.”

Ohtani’s decision to call his own game, a move prompted by the restrictions of the pitch clock, appeared to hit a glitch immediately; before his second pitch of the game, catcher Logan O’Hoppe had to call time to ask him to reenter the code on the device, and O’Hoppe quickly ran out to the mound after Ohtani threw his next pitch. For the rest of the inning, the two returned to the prehistoric days, with O’Hoppe giving Ohtani signs.

Ohtani said the breakdown got him out of his rhythm, and O’Hoppe said, “He probably could have been more unhittable if we had PitchCom in the first inning. You want to go to a different pitch, but you don’t have enough fingers.”

The communication resumed to start the second inning, and Ohtani settled into an efficient groove. When he is in charge, he is nothing if not certain. He frequently keyed in his pitch selection before the pitch clock even began, and on foul balls he reached under his arm and called the next pitch before receiving the baseball. After the fifth inning, home-plate umpire Adrian Johnson paid him a visit.

“He told me I was pitching a little early,” Ohtani said. “Before the batter was in the box.”

Ohtani was in trouble just once, in the fourth, with one out and Aledmys Diaz on third and Seth Brown on second. He then struck out Jesus Aguilar and Ramon Laureano in rapid succession, with Laureano swinging through a 101 mph fastball.

“That sequence right there,” Mike Trout said, shaking his head. “He went from dominant to unhittable.”

(There’s always a statistic to tell the story of Ohtani and the Angels: According to MLB’s Sarah Langs, there have been 25 previous times an Opening Day pitcher struck out 10 and allowed 0 runs. In those games, the pitchers’ teams were 25-0.)

Ohtani’s move to call his own pitches deprives the world of one of the game’s unique pleasures: Ohtani, wearing a quizzical look, incessantly shaking off his catcher. However, the pitch clock combined with the vast array of pitches at his disposal necessitates the adjustment.

“Shohei’s got so many pitches he can throw,” Angels manager Phil Nevin said before the game. “So for him to go through ’em and shake and shake and shake — time’s running out because that thing doesn’t say it quick enough sometimes.”

Major League Baseball approved the use of PitchCom for pitchers just a week ago; instead of the catcher keying in the pitch selection and the pitcher hearing it through a speaker in his cap, the sequence is reversed. Other pitchers, mostly relievers, are using the device to call their own pitches but placing it on their non-throwing wrist or forearm, where they can easily see the numbers as they type them in. Ohtani’s use of PitchCom is different — because he can’t see the numbers, he had to memorize the keypad to make it work.

It was a night of new rules; Ohtani singled to right in the fourth inning, his only hit of the game, on a hard grounder that undoubtedly would have been an out before the shift was outlawed. Ohtani called it a sign that left-handed hitters will no longer be at a disadvantage.

“It’s an even playing field now,” he said.

A’s manager Mark Kotsay said of Ohtani: “It’s great as a fan. You have to see it. He throws 100 and then steps up to the plate and hits the ball where he wants to. What’s not to like?”

ESPN staff writer Paul Gutierrez contributed to this report.

Sports

Walker back in Phils’ rotation after Abel demoted

Published

12 hours ago

July 5, 2025

admin

Walker back in Phils' rotation after Abel demoted

Associated Press

Jul 4, 2025, 12:10 PM ET

PHILADELPHIA — Mick Abel couldn’t sustain his sublime major league debut and is headed to the minors.

Taijuan Walker is back in Philadelphia’s rotation. And anticipation that prized prospect Andrew Painter could be headed to the Phillies will stretch past the All-Star break.

Zack Wheeler, Ranger Suárez and Cristopher Sánchez are about the only sure things this year in Philadelphia’s rotation.

The Phillies demoted Abel, the rookie right-hander who has struggled since he struck out nine in his major league debut, to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. The Phillies also recalled reliever Seth Johnson from Lehigh Valley ahead of Friday’s loss to Cincinnati.

The 23-year-old Abel made six starts for the Phillies and went 2-2 with 5.04 ERA with 21 strikeouts and nine walks.

“Mick needed to go down and breathe a little bit,” manager Rob Thomson said. “Just get a little reset. It’s not uncommon.”

A 6-foot-5 right-hander selected 15th overall by the Phillies in the 2020 amateur draft, Abel dazzled against Pittsburgh in May when his nine strikeouts tied a Phillies high for a debut, set by Curt Simmons against the New York Giants on Sept. 28, 1947.

Abel hasn’t pitched beyond the fifth inning in any of his last four starts and was rocked for five runs in 1⅔ innings Wednesday against San Diego.

Abel was 3-12 with a 6.46 ERA last year for Lehigh Valley, walking 78 in 108⅔ innings. He improved to 5-2 with a 2.53 ERA in eight minor league starts this year, walking 19 in 46⅓ innings.

“This guy’s had a really good year,” Thomson said. “His poise, his composure is outstanding. He’s really grown. We just need to get back to that. Just attack the zone and get through adversity.”

The Phillies will give Walker another start in Abel’s place against San Francisco. Walker has bounced between the rotation and the bullpen over the past two seasons. He has made eight starts with 11 relief appearances this season and is 3-5 with one save and a 3.64 ERA.

Thomson had said he wanted to give Walker an extended look in the bullpen. Abel’s struggles instead forced Walker — in the third year of a four-year, $72-million contract — back to the rotation. For now.

“He always considers himself a starter and ultimately wants to start,” Thomson said. “He’ll do anything for the ballclub, because he’s that type of guy, but I think he’s generally happy he’s going to go back into a normal routine, normal for him, anyway.”

Wheeler, Suárez and Sánchez have been lights-out in the rotation this year and helped lead the Phillies into first place in the NL East. Jesús Luzardo was a pleasant early season surprise but has struggled over the past two months and gave up six runs in two-plus innings in Friday’s 9-6 loss to the Reds.

“I still have all the confidence in the world in Luzardo,” Thomson said. “Everybody’s going to have bad outings here and there. I think we’re still fine.”

Thomson said he had not made a final decision on who will be the fifth starter after the All-Star break. Painter has two more scheduled starts in Triple-A before the MLB All-Star break and could earn a spot in the rotation. The 22-year-old will not pitch in the All-Star Futures Game as part of the plan to keep him on a hopeful path to the rotation.

Painter hurt an elbow during spring training in 2023 and had Tommy John surgery later that year. He was the 13th overall pick in the 2021 amateur draft and signed for a $3.9 million bonus.

Because of the All-Star break and a quirk in the schedule that has them off on all five Thursdays in July, the Phillies won’t even need a fifth starter after next week until July 22.

Aaron Nola could be back by August as he works his way back from a rib injury. Nola will spend the All-Star break rehabbing in Florida and needs one or two minor league starts before he can rejoin the rotation.

Sports

Cubs’ Taillon (calf) to miss more than month

Published

12 hours ago

July 5, 2025

admin

Cubs' Taillon (calf) to miss more than month

Jesse RogersJul 4, 2025, 01:50 PM ET
Close

CHICAGO — Chicago Cubs righty Jameson Taillon was placed on the injured list on Friday with a right calf strain, the team announced before its game against the St. Louis Cardinals. He’s expected to miss “more than a month,” according to manager Craig Counsell.

Taillon, 33, injured his calf on his last wind sprint after a bullpen session on Thursday.

“He’s going to miss a pretty significant amount of time,” Counsell said.

Taillon was 7-6 with a 4.44 ERA in 17 starts for the Cubs this season who just got lefty Shota Imanaga back from a hamstring injury. Now they’ll have to navigate at least the rest of this month without one of their other key starters.

“There’s a little room for us to be flexible right now,” Counsell said citing the upcoming All-Star break. “We’ll use that to our advantage and we’ll go from there.”

The team recalled left-hander Jordan Wicks to take Taillon’s spot on the roster, though he won’t go directly into the rotation. Instead, the Cubs will throw a bullpen game on Saturday against the Cardinals and “go from there,” according to Counsell.

Wicks, 25, went 1-3 with one save, a 4.06 ERA and 46 strikeouts in 12 appearances (11 starts) with Triple-A Iowa this season. In his past five starts dating to May 18, he posted a 1.65 ERA with 20 strikeouts, compared to just three walks, a 0.86 WHIP and a .186 opponent batting average.

The team might also consider a bigger role for righty Chris Flexen who has been fantastic for them out of the bullpen. Flexen, 31, has a 0.62 ERA in 16 games, including a four inning stint late last month.

“He’s a candidate to be stretched out for sure,” Counsell said. “He’s prepared to do a little bit more.”

Cubs brass have already stated they are looking for starting pitching before the trade deadline later this month. Counsell was asked if Taillon’s injury increases that need. He didn’t take the bait.

“The trade deadline isn’t until July 31,” he said. “I’m focused on the next week or 10 games before the All-Star break.”

Sports

Guardians OF Thomas reinjures foot, exits game

Published

12 hours ago

July 5, 2025

admin

Guardians OF Thomas reinjures foot, exits game

Associated Press

Jul 4, 2025, 10:56 PM ET

CLEVELAND — Guardians outfielder Lane Thomas left during the sixth inning of Friday night’s game against the Detroit Tigers due to mild plantar fascia symptoms with his right foot.

Thomas missed 11 games in late May and early June because of plantar fasciitis in his right foot. He is batting .160 this season and .197 (13-for-66) since coming off the injured list on June 9. He does have four homers in his past 10 games.

“We think he’s good. The plantar fasciitis flared up a little bit again and I just didn’t like the way he looked running around the outfield. So rather than take a chance, I got him out of there,” manager Stephen Vogt said after the 2-1 loss to the Tigers.

Thomas also missed five weeks due to a right wrist bone bruise after getting hit by a pitch during the April 8 home opener against the Chicago White Sox.