If you haven’t noticed, the Baltimore Orioles are having a miserable year.
Not only do they have the worst record (38-86) in baseball but they’ve lost 19 straight games and are just two losses away from breaking the AL record for most losses in row (held by the 1988 Orioles). They are also just four losses away from tying the MLB record for most losses in a row set by the 1961 Phillies.
Were there some Angels fans in that mix of boos? Probably. But you have to think anyone who paid money to attend that game wanted to see Ohtani do his thing at the plate.
Plus, the Orioles were already down 8-1 in the third inning! The game was over! Let Ohtani hit!
There’s no doubt that Shohei Ohtani is the face of Major League Baseball for the younger generation of baseball fans. The 27-year-old is an electric player and a delight to behold on the baseball diamond, so his inclusion in the MLB Little League Classic between the Los Angeles Angels and Cleveland Indians was nearly all but assured.
Outside of having a hit and a walk halfway through the game, Ohtani took some time out of his day to FaceTime the ESPN KidsCast broadcast, the alternate presentation to the game featuring content more centered on the youth voice.
In the two-minute interview, Ohtani talked about his mentality coming into the game, how the Angels could make a comeback, and most adorably, what games he plays on his phone.
Shohei Ohtani #大谷翔平 face time interview with the ESPN Kids Cast!
It’s a really sweet interview, showcasting more of Ohtani and why he’s been such a hit with baseball fans of all ages.
Even the broadcast team after the interview opined on Ohtani’s status as a growing baseball star and what he means to the youth of the sport.
Listen to how the kidscast talk about Shohei Ohtani
“The first ever to do FaceTime interview in Sunday Night Baseball & who better to do it with Zoe, than most likely in a few months time the AL MVP, not only the most likely AL MVP but also becoming the new face of baseball” pic.twitter.com/oMlU7oiVP1
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Los Angeles Angels star pitcher/designated hitter Shohei Ohtani has had one one of the most incredible seasons in MLB history this year and what he did last night against the Tigers should have all of us in awe and it also should have wrapped up the AL MVP discussion.
Because his performance in Detroit was absolutely ridiculous.
Ohtani pitched eight innings, allowed just six hits, struck out eight batters and did it all with only 90 pitches. He also got the win (LA won 3-1) to move to 8-1 on the year.
“At that point, I wasn’t sure I was going to pitch the ninth, so I wanted to give myself another run. That’s big for me and the team.”
He wanted to give himself another run!
And then he did just that!
Aw man. Wanted to see Shohei get the CG. Oh well. He'll just have to settle for his 40th home run of the season and eight spectacular innings in which he punched out eight and walked none.
Just a reminder: What he's doing never has been done. Never. Not even Babe Ruth did this.
We shouldn’t be taking any of this for granted because what Ohtani is doing this year is historic, crazy, and so fun.
He became the fourth player in Angels history to hit 40 homers in a season, joining Mike Trout (two times), Troy Glaus (two times, and Albert Pujols… but he did it faster (122 games) than each of those three sluggers.
The Angels gave up the DH spot again for him and had Ohtani, their starting pitcher, bat lead-off against the Tigers.
He didn’t walk anyone in his eight innings.
And he gave himself an insurance run with a homer in the eighth.
That 40th home run is the highest number of home runs hit by a pitcher in a single season in the history of the game. Babe Ruth is second and third on that list but he hit those homers in 1933 (34) and 1921 (20), which are like a million years ago.
Ohtani should win the MVP award. I’d give him the Cy Young, too, because why not? Give him all the awards. Heck, make up some awards and give those to him, too.
It has been a special season for a special player and we’re all very lucky to be witnessing it.
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– White Sox pitcher Lance Lynn tossed his belt at an umpire last night and got ejected for it. He then explained why he did it.
Hall of Famer and Detroit Tigers analyst for Bally Sports Jack Morris was on the mic during Tuesday’s Tigers-Angels contest, when he was asked how he’d approach pitching to Shohei Ohtani.
His response? Using an accent to mock the AAPI community as he said, “Be very, very careful.”
Morris then apologized in the ninth inning: “I sincerely apologize if I offended anybody, especially anybody in the Asian community, for what I said about pitching and being careful to Shohei Ohtani.”
“I did not intend for any offensive thing,” he continued, “and I apologize if I did. I certainly respect and have the utmost respect for this guy.”
It was awful, and there are many who didn’t find that apology — the old “if I offended anybody” — anywhere close to being enough.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. elected to not participate in this year’s Home Run Derby, which was a bit of a bummer because we all wanted to see him crush baseballs through Denver’s altitude (he saved that for the actual All-Star Game).
But that didn’t mean that he wasn’t heavily focused on Monday’s epic Home Run Derby.
The first round between the Nationals’ Juan Soto and Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani went into two tiebreaker rounds. The first tiebreaker was an extra minute while the second tiebreaker was limited to three swings.
There was a lot riding on those three swings, but before Soto went 3 for 3 in the swing-off, Guerrero seemed to be the one to offer some crucial advice to the 22-year-old.
We mic'd up Shohei Ohtani and Juan Soto in the #HRDerby and they didn't disappoint.
In mic’d-up MLB video from the Home Run Derby, Fernando Tatis Jr. and Guerrero gave Soto a pep talk before that final swing-off. Guerrero said (translated to English):
“It’s three swings. Take your time. Boom. You hit it. Take your time, breathe and get back to it. Don’t just swing. Take your time.”
And then Tatis finished it off with “in slow motion!”
Hey, it was solid advice, and Soto took it to heart. He chose the exact three pitches he wanted to drive and put the pressure on Ohtani with the perfect tiebreaker round. Ohtani would get eliminated on his first swing.
But overall, that was an excellent look at the friendly atmosphere between the game’s biggest stars in Denver. You love to see that.
The former Jacksonville defensive end said Jack could be a two-way player in the NFL.
Los Angeles pitcher Shohei Ohtani is in the process of making Major League Baseball history. Dubbed by some as the best two-way player since Babe Ruth, Ohtani was the winning pitcher and leadoff hitter for the American League in Tuesday night’s MLB All-Star Game.
Two-way players in baseball are extraordinarily rare, as Ruth was the last player to pitch 100 innings and have 200 plate appearances in a season, which was nearly 100 years ago. In football, though, they’re less rare (albeit still uncommon).
And according to former Jacksonville and current Baltimore Ravens defensive end Calais Campbell, Jaguars linebacker Myles Jack could be the NFL’s version of Ohtani if given the chance.
Jack is inarguably an incredible athlete, and it wouldn’t be the first time in his football career he’s been asked to play on both sides of the ball. In college at UCLA, Jack saw a healthy amount of action at running back in addition to being a starter at linebacker.
In three years he saw 68 carries for 387 yards and 11 touchdowns, and though Jacksonville hasn’t tried to implement his skill set on offense, it’s not necessarily off the table.
The closest we’ve seen would be his fumble and interception returns, which have flashed some of the moves that led the Bruins to use him on offense in college after being a versatile threat in high school.
He has 97 fumble return yards on his career for one touchdown, and that doesn’t include the yardage he would’ve received had his controversial fumble recovery against New England in the 2017 AFC Championship not been called back.
Given Jack’s importance to the defense, it’s highly unlikely we see Jacksonville risk his health to give him opportunities on offense. But for a former defensive teammate to give Jack those kinda props, it just goes to show how talented he is.
This is the online version of our morning newsletter, The Morning Win. Subscribe to get irreverent and incisive sports stories, delivered to your mailbox every morning.
Major League Baseball held its annual Home Run Derby last night in Denver and while Pete Alonso took home the trophy, the real winner of the event was Angels star Shohei Ohtani, who didn’t even make it out of the first round but was the main reason why so many people tuned in.
Ohtani is in the middle of a season that will go down in the history books and never be forgotten. It’s ridiculous what he’s doing on the field and the huge impact he’s having with fans all over the world. The dude is a megastar and MLB is very, very lucky to have him.
Ohtani leads all of baseball with 33 home runs (five better than anyone else) and tonight he will be the starting pitcher for the American League in the All-Star Game.
Just think about that for a second!
Did you ever think we would see something like that in modern baseball? No, of course not. Nobody would have been able to predict something like that happening but here we are and it’s so darn cool.
I don’t know how somebody sees what Ohtani has been doing and finds anything to rip him for but then again those dumb morning sports shows make their money by yelling fake arguments at each other. It’s pitiful TV and I don’t know how anyone watches that desperate garbage.
Let’s live in reality here – Ohtani has become the face of baseball over the past few months and should continue to be just that the rest of the season. Every bomb he hits quickly goes viral on social media with fans reacting in real time about how in awe they are of this man who can crush home runs and also be a star pitcher. It’s all just so cool and fun, which are two things baseball isn’t often described as.
Now baseball has been given a gift, one the sport desperately needs and is very fortunate to have.
So many casual fans tuned into the Home Run Derby last night to see what Ohtani could do. He didn’t make it out of the first round but he rallied late in his appearance and forced two playoff-type rounds with Juan Soto that had fans buzzing. And it looked like he had a lot of fun doing it.
Baseball has a bunch of young stars doing a lot of great things and Ohtani has jumped to the top of the list with the magical season he’s having.
And we’re all lucky to be able to be along for the ride.
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The 2021 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby will return to Coors Field on Monday night as part of the All-Star festivities.
The 2021 Major League Baseball Home Run Derby will return to Coors Field on Monday night as part of the All-Star festivities.
The Home Run Derby will have eight participants including Joey Gallo, 2019 winner Pete Alonso, Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto, and the hometown favorite, Trevor Story from the Rockies.
This will be one you won’t want to miss, here is everything you need to know to catch the Home Run Derby tonight.
No. 1 Shohei Ohtani (Angels) vs. No. 8 Juan Soto (Nationals)
No. 2 Joey Gallo (Rangers) vs. No. 7 Trevor Story (Rockies)
No. 3 Matt Olson (Athletics) vs. No. 6 Trey Mancini (Orioles)
No. 4 Salvador Perez (Royals) vs. No. 5 Pete Alonso (Mets)
MLB Odds and Betting Lines
MLB odds courtesy of BetMGM Sportsbook. Odds last updated Monday at 1:30 p.m. ET.
S. Ohtani (-200)
J. Gallo (+450)
P. Alonso (+500)
Want some action on the Home Run Derby? Place your legal sports bets on this game or others in CO, IN, NJ, and WV at BetMGM.
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