Los Angeles Angels two-way sensation Shohei Ohtani followed up an eight-RBI game on Tuesday night with an eight-inning performance on Wednesday in which he struck out a career-high 13 batters and did not allow a run against the Kansas City Royals.
After seven innings were in the books, Ohtani’s pitch count sat at 96, but that didn’t stop him from going out there in the eighth and giving the Angels one more inning.
Sam Blum of the Athletic tweeted about what Angels manager Phil Nevin had to say when asked about why Ohtani went out there for the eighth.
And Nevin had a good reason for keeping him in.
Phil Nevin said Shohei Ohtani was adamant about going back out for the 8th when he was at 96 pitches. Nevin said Ohtani told him, “No this is mine.”
— Sam Blum (@SamBlum3) June 23, 2022
“This Is Mine”
That game was Ohtani’s game.
He knew he needed to go out there and give the Angels a strong performance to rest the bullpen and get them to the ninth inning, where Ryan Tepera took over and finished the job.
But you love seeing this out of your ace if you’re a manager.
Ohtani wanted the ball and insisted that he went out there and got through the eighth.
Anytime a pitcher says that the game is his game, you know he’s driven and wants to go out there and give his very best.
And that’s what Ohtani did through eight innings, striking out 13 hitters.
The Angels needed it badly too, after such a tough loss the night before.
Ohtani led the way as the Halos prevented a sweep at the hands of the Royals.
But this is what you want out of your ace pitcher.
You want to see them focused and driven and be ready to go as long as he possibly can to help the team win.
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