Los Angeles Angels Ohtani Shohei (29) set a personal career record of 200 home runs in both the United States and Japan.
On the 24th (hereinafter Korean time), Ohtani started as the designated hitter in the away game against the Colorado Rockies in the 2023 major league held at Coors Field in Denver, Colorado, USA, and played an active part with 3 hits and 1 RBI in 5 at-bats, including the 25th home run of the season.
With the score tied 2-2, Ohtani hit a home run in the 5th inning. Ohtani, who came out as the lead hitter, pulled an 86.9 mile changeup that came deep into the body on the 4th pitch of Colorado lefty starter Kyle Freeland and went over the right-middle wall. 103.1 miles (165.9 km) exit velocity, 434 feet (132.3 m) distance, and 26 degree launch.
On MLB.com Game Day, Freeland’s ball was marked as a changeup, but in an interview with the local media after the game, Freeland revealed that it was a sinker. It was a sinker that was put deep into the left batter’s body, but Ohtani decorated the ball with a home run. “There is only one person on the planet who can swing that ball and make it into a home run,” Freeland said. It comes right away. It is a talent that only one person in this generation has.”
Left-hander Freeland, who also participated in the World Baseball Classic (WBC) as a member of the U.S. national team in March, has played for Colorado for all seven seasons since his debut in 2017, recording a total of 171 games (914 innings), 53 wins, 59 losses, an ERA of 4.29, and 694 strikeouts. is a veteran This season, 16 games (85⅓ innings), 4 wins, 8 losses, an average ERA of 4.54. In this game, he recorded 9 hits (2 home runs), 2 walks, 3 strikeouts and 4 runs (3 earned) in 5 innings.
Ohtani, who restarted the home run in three games after the Kansas City Royals match on the 19th, solidified his lead in the league in this category with 25 homers for the season. In June alone, he started his solo system by hitting 10 home runs in 20 games. The gap widened to six while Aaron Judge (New York Yankees, 19), who was second in the American League (AL), was absent due to a big toe injury.
Ohtani’s home run that day was even more meaningful as it was the 200th home run in the history of the United States and Japan. Ohtani, who made his debut with the Nippon Ham Fighters in 2013, hit 48 home runs in Japan for five years, and then hit 152 home runs in the major leagues from 2018, stepping on the 200 home run mark. In Japan, where the proportion of pitchers was high, in 2016, 22 home runs were the most in a single season, but the potential for long hits exploded in the major leagues. He is the first Japanese player to record more than 20 home runs for three consecutive years with 25 home runs this year, following 46 home runs in 2021 and 34 home runs in 2022. 스포츠토토
Following Ohtani, Mike Trout also recorded a back-to-back home run with his 16th solo shot of the season, but the Angels suffered a 4-7 come-from-behind loss due to bullpen hunting in the 8th inning, allowing 4 runs. Ohtani-Trout’s back-to-back home run was the 4th this year alone and the 9th overall. The two players hit home runs in the same game in 29 games, the seventh this year. The Angels won all six previous games, but this day suffered their first loss.
As the team fell into a three-game losing streak, Ohtani could not enjoy the joy of reaching 200 home runs in his personal career. He delivered a short comment through the club, saying, “I will do my best to hit the 201st home run in the U.S. and Japan career tomorrow.”