“Baseball genius” Shohei Ohtani, 29, exploded for a second-half cannon to help the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim snap a six-game losing streak.
Ohtani started at second base and went 1-for-5 with a double, home run, one home run, one RBI and one walk against the Houston Astros in the 2023 Major League Baseball (MLB) World Series at Angels Stadium in Anaheim, California, USA, on 16 June.
After activating the home run cannon for the first time in the second half, Ohtani hit his 33rd home run of the season in two games. With this, Ohtani, who leads all of MLB in home runs, extended his lead over second-place Matt Olson (30-homer Atlanta Braves) to three.카지노
For the season, Ohtani is batting .302 with 33 home runs, 72 RBI, 11 doubles and a 1.047 OPS (on-base plus slugging percentage) in 91 games.
Ohtani was unsuccessful against Houston starter Framber Valdez. He struck out swinging in the first inning, led off the third inning with a single and was retired on a fielder’s choice, then struck out swinging again in the second inning of the fifth.
In the top of the seventh inning, Ohtani faced a different pitching line-up and again struck out swinging.
However, in his next at-bat, Ohtani delivered a valuable single to start the rally. Leading off the ninth inning with his team trailing 9-12, Ohtani lifted an 89.2 mph (143.6 km/h) outside slider from right-hander Ryan Presley for a solo arch over the mid-wall.
Trailing by two runs, the Angels rattled off four hits after Ohtani’s homer to tie the game at 12-12. The Angels had a chance to end the game in the top of the 10th when Ohtani walked with runners on first and second.
Tyler Ward followed with a hard-hit grounder, but Houston shortstop Gregg Kessinger made a throwing error to end the game and secure the 13-12 victory. With the win, the Angels improved to 46-47 on the season and snapped a six-game losing streak.