Shohei Ohtani stepped into the batter’s field on Sunday with red-striped socks going as much as his knees, a brand new look that every one however marketed the Angels two-way star’s want to shake a season-long funk on the plate.
Ohtani reverted to his normal lengthy pants for Monday evening’s recreation in opposition to the Cleveland Guardians, however he had a brand new lineup spot, supervisor Joe Maddon dropping the slugger from leadoff to second and transferring Taylor Ward to the highest of the order.
Maddon mentioned the transfer was “all Taylor Ward-driven,” a nod to the outfielder’s .528 on-base proportion and 10 walks in his first eight video games, and the change paid instant dividends in a 3-0 victory earlier than a crowd of 23,099 in Angel Stadium.
Ward hit a solo homer within the fifth inning and a two-run shot within the seventh off 2020 American League Cy Younger Award winner Shane Bieber, his first profession multiple-homer recreation backing the stout pitching of Michael Lorenzen, who gave up three hits over six shutout innings, placing out three and strolling 4.
The Angels additionally hope the transfer to what looks like a extra appropriate lineup spot will present a spark for Ohtani, the reigning American League most dear participant who's looking out to regain his constant energy stroke.
Ohtani was hitless and struck out twice in 4 at-bats Monday evening and is now batting .211 with a .653 on-base-plus-slugging proportion, three homers and 9 RBIs in 17 video games, a far cry from the deadly hitter who batted .257 with a .965 OPS, 46 homers and 100 RBIs in 2021.
“I imply, it’s so early, we’re speaking [70] at-bats,” Angels hitting coach Jeremy Reed mentioned earlier than the sport. “I believe for those who put these [70] at-bats in the course of the yr, in June or July, individuals will form of go, ‘OK, he’s going by means of a bit rut.’ It simply will get magnified when it’s April, and the beginning isn’t the best way you need it, as a result of there’s an MVP on his title now.”
The left-handed-hitting Ohtani seems to be pulling off too many pitches, his physique leaning an excessive amount of towards first base on his follow-through, a mechanical flaw that leaves him particularly weak to breaking balls away from left-handers.
Ohtani truly hit left-handers higher than right-handers in 2021, batting .263 with a .980 OPS in opposition to them, in comparison with a .254 common and .954 OPS in opposition to right-handers. However he entered Monday with a .200 common (six for 30) and .593 OPS in opposition to left-handers, in comparison with a .243 common and .766 OPS in opposition to right-handers.
“There are occasions when perhaps the stability hasn’t been the identical, the touchdown place is a tick open, and also you see a few of these swings,” Reed mentioned. “Nevertheless it occurs to Mike [Trout] and to all these guys all through the course of the yr. It’s just a bit alarming. Nevertheless it’s April. We are able to’t panic. He’s not panicking.”
Ohtani was hitless with 5 strikeouts in his first 10 at-bats of a weekend sequence in opposition to Baltimore when he stroked a leadoff single to proper area within the seventh inning and scored the eventual successful run in Sunday’s 7-6 victory.
Ohtani then poked an 0-and-2 slider from left-hander Cionel Perez into middle area for an eighth-inning single, an encouraging finish to a recreation that the Angels hope would be the begin of an prolonged sizzling streak.
“There was much less swing-and-miss, much less chase [on Sunday],” Reed mentioned. “Then he will get an 0-2 breaker up within the zone that he can hammer, and he doesn’t attempt to do an excessive amount of, despite the fact that in Could, that pitch is hit within the seats. You possibly can’t predict residence runs. You possibly can’t predict issues, however you may predict physique place.
“When he will get his physique and his head in the fitting spots and he’s capable of maintain his firing positions, it’s eye-opening when he will get there. You realize that one thing nice is coming. It’s electrical when it goes off the bat.”
Maddon surmises it should solely take a couple of huge video games for Ohtani to take off.
“It’s simply confidence proper now,” Maddon mentioned. “He’s so good, nevertheless it’s all about confidence. He’s going to get sizzling, like scalding sizzling, quickly.”
It wouldn’t damage to have some runners on base when Ohtani comes up, which is why Maddon moved Ward, whom Reed mentioned “controls the strike zone pretty much as good as anybody we've,” to the leadoff spot Monday after spending 2½ weeks defending his determination to bat Ohtani first.
“He was doing a fantastic job getting on base for the 7-8-9 hitters; I figured let’s simply put him on the prime,” Maddon mentioned of Ward. “He makes essentially the most sense there now. Then he will get to feed Shohei, who will get to feed [Trout] … Taylor has been doing an unbelievable job of getting on base. He has a extremely good strategy. I simply thought we’d be losing his companies by not allowing him to stand up a bit bit greater within the order.”
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