What/How has he done?
He is the first player to start as a pitcher and a non-pitcher in his team's first 10 games since 1920 (Joe Bush (Red Sox) and Clarence Mitchell (Dodgers))
He is the first player to start as a non-pitcher on Opening Day followed by a pitching start in his team's first 10 games since 1919 (Babe Ruth, Red Sox)
He is the first player to start as a pitcher and a non-pitcher in the same season since 1988 (Rick Rhoden, Yankees, 30 starts as pitcher, one as DH)
He is the first player to earn a win and then hit a home run in a start as a non-pitcher in his next game since Babe Ruth did it on June 13-14, 1921
He is the first player to have at least four hits, a home run, and a win in his team's first six games since 1937 (Wes Ferrell, Red Sox)
He is the second player to homer in three consecutive games and record a double-digit strikeout game in the same season since 1916 (Babe Ruth (1916 Red Sox) and Ken Brett (1973 Phillies))
He is the first player to have two pitching wins and three home runs in his team's first 10 games since 1919 (Jim Shaw, Washington Senators)
He is the first rookie with at least three hits and at least one pitching win in his team's first 6 games since 1924 (Dutch Stryker, Boston (NL))
He is the first Angels rookie to homer in his first two games at Angel Stadium
He is the first Angels pitcher with at least six strikeouts in his pitching debut since 2003 (Kevin Gregg)
He is the second Japanese-born pitcher with 6+ innings, 6+ strikeouts, and four-or-fewer baserunners allowed in his pitching debut. Masato Yoshii (Mets, April 5, 1998) was the first
He got 18 swings-and-misses in his pitching debut, a total surpassed by Angels pitchers only three times last season
He is the first American League player to homer in three consecutive games in the same season that he started a game as a pitcher since 1930 (Babe Ruth, Yankees)
He set an Angels' franchise record with 12 total bases and 5 RBI through his first three games [The note I saw actually had Ohtani tying Bobby Clark's 1979 record, but BRef has Clark compiling those numbers in four games]
In his second start, he got 24 swings-and-misses, the highest total by a pitcher this season
In his debut on the mound, Ohtani retired the first four batters he faced before giving up two singles and a three-run homer. Since then, Ohtani has retired 33 of 34 batters, allowing only six balls to be hit out of the infield.
Yes. He retired 33 of 34 batters. And only six of those 34 batters hit the ball out of the infield.
Those 34 Batters
Strikeouts: 15 Outfield Flyouts: 6 Infield Groundouts: 8 Infield Lineouts: 1 Infield/Foul Popups: 3 Walk: 1 Hits: 0Play-by-Play
April 1 at Oakland PC 1st: K PF2 K 13 2nd: K 1B 1B HR 43 13 20 3rd: 53 63 K 12 4th: P4 BB L7 K 25 5th: F7 3U K 14 6th: 63 F7 P6 8 April 8 va Oakland PC 1st: K K K 15 2nd: L8 K L7 14 3rd: PF3 K K 13 4th: 3U K 43 10 5th: K K K 13 6th: F9 43 K 10 7th: L6 1B BB 13 K 16 April 1: 6-3-3-1- 6, 92 (18 swings-and-misses) April 8: 7-1-0-1-12, 91 (24 swings-and-misses)All of Ohtani's 18 strikeouts have been swinging. ... In two starts against Oakland, Ohtani threw 66 splitters and got 28 swings-and-misses (42%). ... On Sunday, his swinging-strike percentage was 26.4. Corey Kluber led the AL last year with a swinging-strike percentage of 15.6.
Day-by-Day
0329 at OAK DH 1-for-5, single 0330 at OAK 0331 at OAK 0401 at OAK P 6-3-3-1-6, 92 pitches (retired first 4 and 14 of last 15) 0402 vs CLE 0403 vs CLE DH 3-for-4, home run, 2 runs, 3 RBI 0404 vs CLE DH 2-for-5, home run, run, 2 RBI 0406 vs OAK DH 1-for-4, home run, 2 RBI, walk 0407 vs OAK 0408 vs OAK P 7-1-0-1-12, 91 pitches (retired first 19)Shohei Ohtani will celebrate his 24th birthday in July.
Deadspin's Chris Thompson:
What he is doing so far this season is genuinely insane. Listen to me! He leads the Angels in home runs, batting average, and OPS, and is second in runs batted in, and today he took a perfect game into the seventh inning. He threw 65 total pitches through the first five innings and racked up 10 fucking strikeouts. It's insane! ...Again:
His final pitch [on Sunday] was a nasty 3-2 splitter for strike three, one pitch after he hit 99 mph with a fastball. This is fucking me up. I'm not ready for the Shohei Ohtani era. I'm serious.
He leads the Angels in home runs, batting average, and OPS, and is second in runs batted in, and today he took a perfect game into the seventh inning.The Red Sox will be in Anaheim on April 17-19. (Ohtani has pitched on consecutive Sundays, so I assume he would not pitch against the Red Sox in this Tuesday-Thursday series.) The Angels are at Fenway on June 26-28.
7 comments:
When Ohtani pitches, opponents have a .089 batting average.
When Ohtani hits, he has a .389 batting average.
Ohtani has more home runs this season than Aaron Judge and more strikeouts than Max Scherzer.
Ohtani is the first player in 99 years to win two games and hit three HRs in the first 10 games of a season.
He ranks 2nd in the AL in batting with a wRC+ of 278.
He ranks 5th in the AL in pitching with an xFIP of 1.87.
Yesterday:
Q: Was this the best game you ever pitched?
Ohtani: "No. 1 in my life was around when I was in elementary school."
Keith Olbermann tweets:
A little historical context on Ohtani, who in his first five major league starts hit three homers, retired 27 consecutive batters, gave up 4 hits, K'd 18. The last true two-way player was Win Mercer in 1899 (.299/.360/.360: 13-17, 3.86 as SP and platoon 3B-SP, Washington)
Babe Ruth was not per se a two-way player. He slowly converted from exclusively a LHSP to an OF with the Red Sox, midseason 1918-midseason 1919, after which he made 7 more starts in his life, 2 as last-game-of-the-season stunts.
Guy Hecker, Louisville 1886, was the last true 2-way success. Led in AVG (.341), 2nd in OBA, 3 in OPS, 4th in SLG, 8 Adjusted Batting Wins, had 4 HR, 25 SB. 6th in ERA and Adjusted Pitching Wins, 7th in WHIP, 8th in GS, 9th in Wins, IP. Two years earlier he went 52-20, 1.84
Of course when Guy Hecker did this - and he had a career 113 ERA+ and a 117 OPS+ - the pitcher stood 50 feet from the plate and overhand pitching was legalized in his third season.
Upshot: if Ohtani can continue this for a season, let alone a career, he will be THE first.
PS Guy Hecker threw a no-hitter in 1882 - as a...rookie (his ERA+ was a whopping 191 but his OPS+ was only 124 that year)
***
SoSHer Margo McCready watched the game on Sunday: "I can not believe what I'm seeing right now. Going right after hitters with 99 mph gas on the black and a Koji-esque splitter. Mixing in a slider that nails the bottom corner every time, too. Just wow."
His stretch of retiring 33 out of 34 batters included setting down 27 in a row.
In his two starts, only 6 of his 45 batters have reached base.
Smallest Surprise Ever: Ohtani named AL Player of the Week.
More:
Set Angels' records with 16 total bases and 7 RBI through first four career games with a plate appearance
Became the fourth player all-time to homer in his first three career home games with a plate appearance (also, Chris Davis, Tom Murphy and Matt Kemp)
First AL player with a home run and 2+ RBI in each of first three career home games since RBI became official (1920)
First Angels rookie ever to homer in first three games at Angel Stadium and second ASngels player to ever accomplish the feat (Bobby Bonds, 1977)
Fourth player all-time to homer in his first three career home games with a plate appearance (Chris Davis, Tom Murphy and Matt Kemp)
12 strikeouts on Sunday tied the American League record for a player in one of their first two games as a pitcher (Tim Fortungo (Angels) in 1992 and Elmer Myers (Philadelphia A's) in 1915
Third Angels rookie with 12+ strikeouts in a game (Fortugno in 1992 and Jorge Rubio (15K) in 1966)
Had 25 swinging strikes among the 91 pitches he threw on Sunday -- the most by any pitcher in a game this season. 16 came on his splitter
Retired the final eight batters in his debut on April 1. Combined with 19 straight batters he retired on Sunday, Ohtani retired 27 A's in succession.
First AL player to homer in three straight games in the same season that he started a game as a pitcher since Babe Ruth (five times: 1918-1921, 1930)
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