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ANAHEIM, Calif. — Shohei Ohtani is still evaluating medical opinions on the tear in his right ulnar collateral ligament, but his agent, Nez Balelo of CAA, made two things clear Monday afternoon: Ohtani will be ready to at least hit at the start of next season, regardless of how much longer he plays in 2023, and he will remain a two-way player down the road.

“There’s not a question in his mind that he’s going to come back and he’s going to continue to do both,” Balelo told a large contingent of reporters from his suite at Angel Stadium, marking the first time he, or Ohtani, has addressed the media since his tear was revealed Aug. 23.

Ohtani will continue to hit for the foreseeable future — though he was a late scratch from Monday’s lineup because of what the Los Angeles Angels described as right oblique tightness — but Balelo didn’t commit to him hitting the rest of the season.

Balelo acknowledged that Ohtani, who will soon be one of the most prominent free agents in baseball history, will eventually undergo “some type of procedure,” a list of options that would seemingly include Tommy John surgery — the standard UCL replacement that would keep him off a mound through the 2024 season — or a noninvasive treatment that utilizes stem cells and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) in an effort to strengthen the ligament. A relatively new, less-invasive bracing procedure also has been popularized in recent years, though it is unclear whether Ohtani is a candidate for that.

In dealing with a previous UCL tear, Ohtani underwent stem cell and PRP therapy in June 2018 in hopes of avoiding surgery, then learned he needed Tommy John less than three months later and underwent the procedure Oct. 1 of that year.

Waiting until then kept Ohtani from serving as a designated hitter until May of the following season. But Balelo expressed confidence that won’t be the case this time around, adding that the most recent tear is on the lowest extremity of his right UCL, closest to the ulna and radius bones, whereas the tear five years ago was at the highest extremity, attached to the humerus.

“It’s completely different,” Balelo said, adding that the graft from Ohtani’s initial surgery is “all together, all intact, no problems. Everything looks good.”

Balelo said doctors told him the current tear is “the best-case scenario for the situation we’re in,” though he didn’t provide any indication on a course of action or a return to pitching.

“Shohei’s going to be fine,” Balelo said. “Is he going to pitch the rest of the year? No. We already know that. Is he going to get into next year? We don’t know yet. So just bear with me on that. But I do know this — no matter what timetable we’re dealing with and when we get this done, Shohei’s going to be in somebody’s lineup next year, DHing when the bell rings. We know that. We’re not going to push that. He’s going to be good to go.”

Ohtani served as the Angels’ designated hitter for most of 2018 and all of 2019 and struggled to both pitch and hit during the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season. But he emerged as a two-way force the following year, winning the American League MVP award unanimously in 2021 and finishing second to Aaron Judge, who set the AL home run record, in 2022. The 2023 MVP is all but certain to be Ohtani’s, even though the Angels are trending toward their eighth consecutive losing season.

Ohtani entered the Angels’ most recent homestand leading the majors in OPS (1.066), homers (44) and triples (eight) while adding 20 stolen bases. He finished his season as a pitcher with a 10-5 record, a 3.14 ERA and 167 strikeouts in 132 innings.

Ohtani’s last start came Aug. 23, when he exited in the second inning of a doubleheader and later underwent the MRI that revealed the tear. Ohtani nonetheless opted to hit in the second game of the doubleheader and continued to hit during the Angels’ ensuing road trip through New York, Philadelphia and Oakland.

“This guy loves the game,” Balelo said. “When he found out that there’s nothing that he can do to create any more damage than what’s already been done, he was like, ‘I’m going to play this thing out until we gather more information to make the right decision.’ That’s where we’re at as of today.”

Ohtani skipped the start that preceded his last outing because of what was described as arm fatigue and had been battling intermittent bouts of cramping and fatigue in prior weeks, prompting questions around whether the Angels could have prevented the tear or at least caught it sooner. Angels general manager Perry Minasian told reporters last week that Ohtani and Balelo declined an MRI after Ohtani’s Aug. 3 start against the Seattle Mariners, when he complained of finger cramps. Balelo confirmed those details, adding that Ohtani homered later in that game and made his next scheduled start, throwing 97 pitches.

“It was just a quick suggestion,” Balelo said. “Thought about it, talked to him, everything was good. It didn’t warrant it at all.”

Ohtani is not expected to address the media any time soon. Balelo wouldn’t get into what types of contracts he will pursue in free agency or Ohtani’s chances of re-signing with the Angels, but he said the player’s relationship with the team hasn’t been strained by recent developments. As was the case when Ohtani continued to hit through a Grade 2 tear for the last three and a half months in 2018, doctors have told Balelo that Ohtani can’t do any further damage to his UCL by continuing to serve as the Angels’ DH.

“He can lift, he can run, he can slide, take violent swings,” Balelo said. “He can do anything he wants right now. It doesn’t affect the problem in question. We’re good. Whatever we decide to get done, we have to take into consideration next year. The way the timetable is going to play out, he’s going to be fine when the bell rings in ’24.”

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Schwarber reaches 1,000-hit milestone with HR

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Schwarber reaches 1,000-hit milestone with HR

NEW YORK — Philadelphia Phillies slugger Kyle Schwarber topped Mark McGwire for most home runs among a player’s first 1,000 hits, hitting long ball No. 319 during Friday night’s 12-5 victory over the New York Yankees.

“I don’t know if that’s a good thing or not,” Schwarber said.

Ten days after lifting the National League to victory in the first All-Star Game swing-off, Schwarber keeps going deep. He hit a pair of two-run homers Friday night, with the first drive, his milestone hit, starting the comeback from a 2-0 deficit. He got the ball back after it was grabbed by a Phillies fan attending with his friends in Yankee Stadium’s right-center-field seats.

“I saw it on the video and then I see the dude tugging,” Schwarber said. “I’m like: ‘Oh, they all got Philly stuff on.’ That was cool.”

He met the trio after the game, gave an autographed ball to each and exchanged hugs. When he went to get a third ball to autograph, one of the three said he just wanted the potential free agent to re-sign with the Phillies.

“You show up to the field every single day trying to get a win at the end of the day, and I think our fans kind of latch on to that, right?” Schwarber said. “It’s been fantastic these last 3½ years, four years now. The support that we get from our fans and it means a lot to me that, you know, that they attach themselves to our team.”

Schwarber tied it at 2-2 in the fifth against Will Warren when he hit a 413-foot drive on a first-pitch fastball.

After J.T. Realmuto‘s three-run homer off Luke Weaver built a 6-3 lead in a four-run seventh and the Yankees closed within a run in the bottom half, Schwarber sent an Ian Hamilton fastball 380 feet into the right-field seats.

Schwarber reached 1,000 hits with eight more homers than McGwire. Schwarber has 36 homers this year, three shy of major league leader Cal Raleigh, and six homers in seven games since he was voted All-Star MVP. He has 33 multihomer games.

“I don’t know where we’d be without him,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said. “Comes up with big hit after big hit after big hit. It’s just — it’s amazing.”

Schwarber, 32, is eligible for free agency this fall after completing a four-year, $79 million contract. He homered on all three of his swings in the All-Star Game tiebreaker, and when the second half began, Phillies managing partner John Middleton proclaimed: “We love him. We want to keep him.”

“He’s been an incredible force all season long,” Realmuto said. “What he’s meant to his team, his offense, it’s hard to put in words.”

A World Series champion for the 2016 Chicago Cubs, Schwarber has reached 35 homers in all four seasons with the Phillies. He’s batting .255 with 82 RBIs and a .960 OPS.

He also has almost as many home runs as singles (46).

Schwarber had not been aware he topped McGwire for most homers among 1,000 hits.

“I had no clue. I didn’t even know it was my 1,000th, to be honest with you,” he said.

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A’s Kurtz becomes first rookie with 4-HR game

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A's Kurtz becomes first rookie with 4-HR game

Nick Kurtz of the Athletics became the first rookie in Major League Baseball history to hit four home runs in a game, part of a spectacular Friday night for the 22-year-old that will go down as one of the greatest offensive displays the sport has seen.

Kurtz also matched the MLB record with 19 total bases in the 15-3 triumph against the Astros in Houston.

“It’s arguably the best game I’ve ever watched from a single player,” Athletics manager Mark Kotsay said. “This kid continues to have jaw-dropping moments.”

Kurtz didn’t make an out all night, going deep in the second, sixth, eighth and ninth innings. He also doubled — a 381-foot drive that would have been out in six major league ballparks — and singled on his 6-for-6 night to equal Shawn Green, who had four homers, six hits and 19 total bases for the Los Angeles Dodgers on May 23, 2002 at Milwaukee.

Kurtz and Green are the only players with six hits in a four-homer game.

“It’s hard to think about this day being kind of real, it still feels like a dream,” Kurtz said in a postgame television interview. “So it’s pretty remarkable. I’m kind of speechless. Don’t really know what to say.”

It was the 20th four-homer game in major league history and second this season. Arizona’s Eugenio Suárez did it on April 26 against Atlanta. No player has ever hit five home runs in a game.

Kurtz finished with eight RBIs and six runs scored.

The 6-foot-5, 22-year-old slugger has 23 homers in 66 games this season. The fourth pick in last year’s amateur draft out of Wake Forest, he made his major league debut April 23 and hit his first homer May 13.

He is the youngest player with a four-homer game. Pat Seerey of the Chicago White Sox was 25 when he homered four times on July 18, 1948.

“This is the first time my godparents have been here, so they probably have to come in the rest of the year,” Kurtz said. “My parents flew in today. They’ve been here a bunch, but it was cool to have some family here for that.”

On Friday, Kurtz homered off each of the Astros’ four pitchers: Ryan Gusto, Nick Hernandez, Kaleb Ort and outfielder Cooper Hummel, who worked the ninth with the game out of hand. His longest drive was his third, a 414-foot solo shot off Ort in the eighth.

For his fourth homer, Kurtz hit an opposite-field line drive to the Crawford Boxes in left field on a 77 mph, 2-0 pitch from Hummel. The three-run shot made it 15-2.

“With a positional player on the mound, I’m just trying to move the ball forward,” Kurtz said. “You don’t want to be the guy that strikes out. That’s only my second at bat ever off a positional player, so I don’t know. Just trying to move the ball forward and get something that I can touch, and I hit another one.”

Kurtz’s double in the fourth inning hit just below the yellow line over the visitor’s bullpen, narrowly missing what would have been a fifth homer.

“Everybody was just like, laughing,” A’s shortstop Jacob Wilson said. “How is he doing it? This is not normal. He’s playing a different sport than us right now. It’s not baseball, it’s just T-ball what he’s doing right now.”

With the baseballs from his last two homers inside a plastic bag at his locker, Kurtz signed scorecards from all four A’s broadcasters and a lineup card. One of the scorecards and a bat were bound for the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Kurtz has been the best hitter in the majors in July, ranking first in batting average (.425), on-base percentage (.494), slugging percentage (1.082), runs (22), doubles (13), homers (11) and RBIs (27).

He extended his hitting streak to 12 games, and his 23 home runs are the most for an A’s rookie since Yoenis Céspedes in 2012 and fourth most in franchise history.

Kurtz entered Friday as a -325 favorite at ESPN BET to win American League Rookie of the Year. His odds moved to -2500 after Friday night.

Information from ESPN Research and The Associated Press was used in this report.

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Yankees land 3B, acquire McMahon from Rockies

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Yankees land 3B, acquire McMahon from Rockies

NEW YORK — The Yankees on Friday acquired third baseman Ryan McMahon from the Colorado Rockies in exchange for minor league pitchers Griffin Herring and Josh Grosz, the teams announced.

The Yankees assumed the remainder of McMahon’s contract, which includes approximately $4.5 million for the rest of 2025 and $32 million over the next two seasons, a source told ESPN.

An All-Star last season, McMahon, 30, was batting .217 with 16 home runs, a .717 OPS and a National League-leading 127 strikeouts in 100 games for Colorado in 2025. After a dreadful start to the season through April, he has been significantly better, with a .246 batting average, 14 home runs and an .804 OPS. He hit home runs in the first two games after the All-Star break and another Tuesday. He is on pace to keep his four-year 20-homer streak alive.

Defensively, McMahon is a Gold Glove-caliber third baseman whose four Outs Above Average is third in the majors this season. He joins a Yankees club that has been marred by sloppy defense. On Wednesday, the Yankees committed four errors against the American East-leading Toronto Blue Jays.

“He has had some ups and downs offensively this year,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said of McMahon. “I know, over the last month, he’s really swinging the bat well, but he’s a presence, and he can really defend over there at third and has for a number of years. So, we’re excited to get him.”

Arizona Diamondbacks third baseman Eugenio Suarez, who began Friday with 36 home runs and an MLB-leading 86 RBIs, could be the best hitter moved before the July 31 trade deadline, but the Yankees were not particularly aggressive in pursuing him, a source told ESPN’s Jeff Passan.

Though McMahon’s offensive production resulted in a 92 OPS+, which suggests he has been 8% worse than the average major league hitter this season, he’s still a significant offensive upgrade at third base for New York. The Yankees have had Oswald Peraza, one of the worst hitters in the majors, playing third base nearly every day since the club released DJ LeMahieu, another former Rockies player, earlier this month and moved Jazz Chisholm Jr. to second base.

Peraza, though a strong defender, is slashing .147/.208/.237 in 69 games this season. His 24 wRC+ ranks last among the 310 hitters with at least 160 plate appearances this season.

McMahon has played his first eight-plus seasons with the Rockies. They selected him in the second round of the 2013 draft. He debuted four years later and became a regular in 2019. By then, the Rockies were descending to the bottom of the NL West. This year, they’re 26-76 and could finish with the most losses in major league history.

He leaves that environment for New York’s pressure cooker and a club with World Series aspirations, a change the Yankees hope can help McMahon.

“Hopefully, the environment is a great thing for him, that he falls into that and doesn’t have to be the guy,” Boone said. “Go do your thing. Go find the role. But it’s our job — my job, staff, coaches, players — to make sure they’re welcomed and get them as comfortable as possible.”

The price for McMahon — and his team control over the next two seasons — was a pair of pitchers who have not reached Double-A.

Herring, 22, has a 1.71 ERA in 89⅓ innings across 16 starts between Low- and High-A this season. He was a sixth-round pick out of LSU in the 2024 draft.

Grosz, an 11th-round pick in 2023, had a 4.14 ERA in 87 innings over 16 games (15 starts) for High-A Hudson Valley this season.

With third base addressed, the Yankees will seek to acquire pitchers to bolster their rotation and bullpen. Luis Gil‘s return should help. The right-hander, who has been out all season because of a lat injury, made his third rehab start Wednesday. Boone said there’s “a good chance” Gil gets another start in the minors before making his season debut.

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