A collision at home plate marked the end of the night for Los Angeles Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani midway through the game with the Chicago White Sox on Sunday, although the team announced later in the game that he was “fine” and would be re-evaluated on Monday.
Ohtani, who put both facets of his game on display in his season pitching debut, was covering home plate after a passed ball in the fifth inning. Chicago’s Jose Abreu scored from third on the play, and one of his cleats hit Ohtani on the left ankle and sent the pitcher tumbling to the ground.
Ohtani left the field with a noticeable limp, although the team said later that he wasn’t removed from the game because of the injury, according to ESPN.
The left-hander’s pitch count was at 92, with 53 for strikes. He walked three and allowed one hit but gave up no runs in his first four innings
In the fifth, however, a single, Ohtani’s errant pickoff throw, back-to-back walks and a wild pitch preceded the play before the collision at the plate. Steve Cishek came on the get the final out of the inning.
Ohtani gave up three runs — one earned — on two hits and five walks with seven strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings.
In the bottom of the first inning, Ohtani showed off the other side to his game, launching a solo home run that had an exit velocity of 115.2 mph, making it the hardest-hit homer throughout the majors to start the season.
In the top of the first inning, Ohtani fired a baseball that also hit triple digits: 101 mph.
