Los Angeles Angeles two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani took things to another level in Thursday night’s 4-2 win over the Oakland Athletics at Angel Stadium.
On the mound, Ohtani threw eight scoreless innings, allowed two hits, struck out 10, and allowed one walk.
Ohtani had a no-hitter still going with two outs in the top of the eighth inning, but Oakland’s Conner Capel broke it up with a single through the left side of the infield. This batted ball had just a .370 expected batting average:
Oakland’s Dermis Garcia singled as well in the next at-bat, on a batted ball that had an expected average of .300.
So, some tough luck there at the end for Ohtani, but that’s one of the many reasons why it’s so hard to throw a no-hitter. Along with excellent pitching, it usually features a few fortunate breaks and great defense.
And in addition to starring as a pitcher, Ohtani made an impact with his bat in the game as well. He went 2-for-4 and extended his hitting streak to 14 games with an RBI single in the bottom of the first inning.
Ohtani now has a 2.35 ERA over 161 innings pitched this season, and he has a .275/.358/.529 slash line with a 145 wRC+ as a hitter over 639 plate appearances. It’s unprecedented and mind-blowing.
Here’s a look at how the baseball world is reacting to Ohtani’s brilliance and no-hit bid on Wednesday night:
About Matt Clapp
Matt is an editor/writer at The Comeback and Awful Announcing.
He can be reached by email at mclapp@thecomeback.com.