The Los Angeles Angels signed Japanese phenom Shohei Ohtani in the offseason, but will his past success translate to MLB?
The Los Angeles Angels have the best player in baseball, Mike Trout. In the offseason, they signed the Japanese Babe Ruth, Shohei Ohtani. He was a stud in Japan, but will it translate in America? He hasn’t looked good at the plate in spring training, and has given up balls over the fence as well.
Still, it’s only spring training and players aren’t back to their best selves. So maybe we should give Ohtani some more time before drawing any sweeping conclusions. MLB insider Jeff Passan wrote a great article about Ohtani and how scouts thinks he has a lot of work to do at the plate. Here’s the key quote about the holes in his offensive game:
"Another scout at the game focused on how Ohtani moved his 6-foot-4, 220-pound body – and while he believes Ohtani can be a good hitter with time, there were obvious issues. He did not, the scout said, hit from a balanced base. His front hip leaked out during his swing. He needed to cheat on inside fastballs, leaving him susceptible to a spate of other pitches. He showed a heavy top-hand swing, which is not necessarily a problem – Bryce Harper, like Ohtani a left-handed swinger and right-handed thrower, focuses intensely on his top-hand movement – but as presently constituted with Ohtani could cause a significant number of rollover groundouts, according to the scout."
Ohtani needs to adapt to major-league hitting if he wants to be successful. The scout made a good point that his top-hand swing isn’t necessarily a problem, since other successful players, including Bryce Harper, do the same thing. He just needs to learn how to hit in MLB.
At 23, he still has time to adjust. Unfortunately, the Angels are putting him the in starting rotation already, as well as making him play DH every couple days. He’s being shoved into the thick of things with little to no experience. The Angels should send him down to Triple-A to get experience before playing as an MLB regular.
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LA is making a mistake if they think he’s ready to go in such a short amount of time. The club looks to be putting the burden on him way too soon. Ohtani isn’t even in the prime of his career yet, so there shouldn’t be any rush. If he’s that special, he will adapt and be an impact player.
It’s not likely that it will happen on both sides of the ball. The Angels lineup has improved this offseason, even without Ohtani. The club should let him focus on the mound, and worry about offense later. Ohtani’s best suited as an impact player on the hill, not at the dish.