Despite the Los Angeles Angels’ late collapse on Monday night, there was one silver lining to take away from it.
Shohei Ohtani, the famous two-way star who constantly draws comparisons to the great Babe Ruth, had himself a night on the mound, throwing six innings of two-run ball against a powerful Seattle Mariners lineup.
Ohtani also struck out eight batters as he earned a no decision.
But he also did something on the fly last night.
Out of nowhere, the Halos ace started throwing sinkers, which averaged at about 97 MPH.
They may have been a little inconsistent, as Mike Petriello mentioned on Twitter, but they had three inches more drop and two inches more break than others at that velocity.
He also did it on the fly.
Sort of out of nowhere, Shohei Ohtani started throwing sinkers last night. They were pretty inconsistent, but they were at 97 MPH, and they had +3 inches more drop and +2 inches more break than others at that velo, and also he just invented it out of nowhere. pic.twitter.com/Fjk0yRMpyd
— Mike Petriello (@mike_petriello) August 16, 2022
Ohtani Tries Something New
We all know about Ohtani’s ability to hit homers and pitch like an ace, but he added another layer to his dominance on the baseball field.
He randomly started throwing sinkers and Mariners hitters were swinging and missing.
That’s the sign of a crafty pitcher who knows how to paint the corners and find ways to keep hitters off balanced.
Ohtani gave the Angels everything he had last night while also trying something new in the process, which at the end of the day, worked.
You can never count out Ohtani, even in the midst of a poor season for the Angels.
Ohtani is still one of the best players in all of baseball and cannot be overlooked.
While the Angels have struggled, he has had himself a solid season.
But it’s impressive that he was able to just start throwing sinkers on the fly and make it work for him, especially against a tough lineup.