sub{bottom:-0.25em;}/*!sc*/ .mHQYb .p-search__input--icon{position:absolute;top:0.75rem;right:1rem;}/*!sc*/ Command of all of his stuff, repetition of his delivery, hes quicker out of the stretch, he goes to the slower, more elongated delivery when no one is on base, Maddon said. .mHQYb header.mlb-header .header__nav-top__nav-item--mobile-quick-nav{display:inline;}/*!sc*/ Yeah, its been hard to keep my motivation up when were out of the playoff race, but Im gonna keep my head down and stay in there.. img{border-style:none;}/*!sc*/ Theres chatter about him participating in the Home Run Derby, and he also possesses one of the best pitches in the history of baseball, somehow. Perhaps the most fascinating story in baseball is Shohei Ohtani, the Los Angeles Angels' two-way phenomenon who is making his mark as both a hitter and a pitcher. That sinker movement is above average in both directions. Jul 9, 2021 Time to get to work! Hes based on feel. But where his four-seamer drops 14.6 inches, his splitter drops 31.7 inches. Imagine that Ohtani has once again hit 40 homers and struck out 140 guys and has led the team just as steadily and consistently as he did this year. I spoke with Perry [Minasian, Angels general manager] in spring training, and we decided just to watch and see how hes doing and make decisions based on where hes at during the course of the year. Shohei Ohtani, Shintaro Fujinami ready for 2023 spring training clash Shohei Ohtani hits 29th homer in win over Yankees Kyle Crick (PIT): +10.8 inches above avg. In the wise words of Christopher Walken, We need more splitters! Or maybe he said cowbell. Whos to say! Twitter Web App 224 Retweets 50 Quote Tweets 1,654 Likes Rob Friedman @PitchingNinja Sep 20, 2021 Replying to @PitchingNinja For some color: For the year, he's averaged 5 inches. Its easy to sell Ohtani as an above average MLB pitcher, but he is not without flaws. .blUWSx .share-button__link--message{position:absolute;display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;justify-content:center;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;height:100%;left:-105px;bottom:2px;padding:0 5px;border-radius:5px;background:#041E42;color:#ffffff;font-family:"proxima-nova","open Sans","Helvetica","Arial",sans-serif;font-size:12px;}/*!sc*/ .mHQYb header.mlb-header.mlb-header--side-nav-open .header__nav-top__nav-items{display:none;}/*!sc*/ .ebrWqN:-moz-loading{color:#f3f3f3;}/*!sc*/ Now imagine that Ohtani, feeling strong and healthy and like he could maybe start throwing 50 or more splitters per game for a short period of time, gets to make a few starts in the playoffs. .mHQYb header.mlb-header .icon-globe{margin-left:32px;}/*!sc*/ *{box-sizing:border-box;}/*!sc*/ His splitter also comes straight at the hitter -- but then the bottom drops out. Find your thing. .mHQYb .p-search-item__image-selector--active{background-color:#4c8cee;}/*!sc*/ .mHQYb header.mlb-header.mlb-header--side-nav-open .header__nav-top .header__nav-top__button-menu--icon span:nth-child(1),.mHQYb header.mlb-header.mlb-header--side-nav-open .header__nav-top .header__nav-top__button-menu--icon span:nth-child(4){opacity:0;}/*!sc*/ Some of that was evident in the second inning, which he began by walking the first three batters -- including a four-pitch walk to Trey Cabbage that loaded the bases with no outs.\n\nAfter a visit from As pitching coach Scott Emerson, though, Fujinami settled in, notching a strikeout on a well-placed 97 mph fastball that froze Aaron Whitefield and inducing an inning-ending double play against Livan Soto.\n\nI felt really good in the first inning, but I was trying to do too much in the second, Fujinami said through interpreter Issei Kamada. Shohei Ohtani Unleashed - The New York Times Ohtani's All-Star hitter credentials are now backed up by a 176 OPS+and MLB-leadingmarks in home runs (32) and slugging percentage (.700). Feel free to round that up to 100 if you want. "There are things that he can do on a baseball field that. By any advanced metric, Ohtanis splitter is fooling would-be hitters at a historic rate. One of the things that makes baseballs core pitcher-batter duel so great is that its a constantly evolving chess match of adjustments and counteradjustments. Although Ohtani has often relied on a translator in the past, it seems as though he understood this question just perfectly. @media (min-width:768px){.mHQYb header.mlb-header .header__nav-top__logo img{min-height:40px;max-height:40px;}}/*!sc*/ Its a downright filthy pitch that ranks 11th in whiff rate and 26th in run value per 100 in all of baseball. The AL MVP race is essentially down to Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani and Yankees slugger Aaron Judge with just a little more than a month remaining in the season. Ohtani's splitter is generating the highest swing-and-miss rate of any individual pitch in MLB.\n\n**Highest whiff rate with a single pitch type, 2021**\n_Minimum 20 swings vs. that pitch type_\n1) Shohei Ohtani's splitter: 74%\n2) Josh Staumont's curveball: 73%\n3) (tie) Corbin Burnes' slider: 67%\n3) (tie) Corbin Burnes' changeup: 67%\n3) (tie) Corey Kluber's changeup: 67%","type":"markdown"},{"__typename":"PhotoPart","caption":null,"contextualCaption":null,"contextualAspectRatio":"1:1","credit":null,"format":"jpg","templateUrl":"https://img.mlbstatic.com/mlb-images/image/private/{formatInstructions}/v1619554426/mlb/zphkde8jo3k6mm6ez4gb","type":"photo"},{"__typename":"Markdown","content":"Ohtani has ramped up his splitter velocity this season, and that's made it filthier than ever. Kyrsten Sinema's Odds Of Reelection Don't Look Great. .kwDmpG input{box-sizing:border-box;margin-bottom:16px;}/*!sc*/ .hUHmCp{margin-top:24px;background-color:#ffffff;}/*!sc*/ Shohei Ohtani shines in Angels loss to the Oakland Athletics on Sunday. I think he was experimenting with some different grips, and apparently it was working pretty well. Ohtani throws a true four-seamer. Maddon believes the benefits of pitching Sunday and making one or possibly two more starts this season could be felt in 2022. .dLQAwR .contributor__text--twitter{font-size:0.8rem;font-weight:600;}/*!sc*/ .mHQYb .p-search__input--icon--sm{top:0.5rem;right:0.5rem;}/*!sc*/ h5.headlinestyle__HeadlineWrapper-sc-1ccyctx-0{font-weight:normal;}/*!sc*/ Tinkering with Shohei Ohtani's Pitch Usage | Just Baseball As Angels starter Shohei Ohtani warmed up before the second inning in a game against the Giants on Wednesday, a foreign substance was spotted in his back pocket. data-styled.g155[id="newsletterOptinstyle__Form-sc-d7sh2p-0"]{content:"fAmXvR,"}/*!sc*/ By Neil Paine Filed under MLB. sup{top:-0.5em;}/*!sc*/ .mHQYb .p-search__list--multiple-type .p-search-item--team + .p-search-item--player:before{border-top:1px solid #ddd;content:'Players';left:10px;right:10px;}/*!sc*/ .mHQYb header.mlb-header.mlb-header--side-nav-open .header__nav-top{height:56px;}/*!sc*/ Mike DiGiovanna has been covering Major League Baseball for the Los Angeles Times since 1995 and spent 19 years as the Angels beat writer and two seasons on the Dodgers. I know that Fuji wants to be a special player. data-styled.g157[id="newsletterOptinstyle__Title-sc-d7sh2p-2"]{content:"ihHuHi,"}/*!sc*/ All rights reserved. Hes working so hard this camp to prove to not only other people, but to himself, that he is this type of player. With Statcast's new spin axis data, we can see how Ohtani throws his four-seamer and splitter with close to the same spin direction. He makes adjustments constantly, but the biggest difference from when I first saw him last year to now is overall command of all of his pitches.. That Ohtani surpassed the 100-inning mark, a threshold no other Angels pitcher will reach this season, seems remarkable for a 27-year-old who did not pitch in 2019 while recovering from Tommy John surgery and was limited by elbow problems to 1 2/3 innings in two games in 2020. .mHQYb header.mlb-header .header__nav-top__secondary-logos > *{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex:1 1 auto;-ms-flex:1 1 auto;flex:1 1 auto;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;-webkit-box-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;justify-content:center;}/*!sc*/ .drUhS{pointer-events:none;width:100%;height:100%;display:inline-block;overflow:visible;fill:#000000;stroke:#000000;}/*!sc*/ Triple-digit velocity is reason enough to get excited to watch a pitcher. .mHQYb header.mlb-header[data-is-club] .header__nav-top .header__nav-top__tagline img,.mHQYb header.mlb-header[data-is-microsite] .header__nav-top .header__nav-top__tagline img{height:56px;max-width:512px;line-height:56px;}/*!sc*/ The right-hander showed off an electric arsenal over two scoreless innings, striking out three batters on 39 pitches. .mHQYb header.mlb-header .header__nav-top__nav-item--spotlight{background-color:#ffffff;}/*!sc*/ .groqnz .ad-body-container .ad-body-inner-container{margin-bottom:32px;padding:43px 0 16px 0;position:relative;text-align:center;width:343px;}/*!sc*/ code,kbd,samp{font-family:monospace,monospace;font-size:1em;}/*!sc*/ @media (min-width:768px){.epHHrr.youtube iframe{width:500px;}}/*!sc*/ pic.twitter.com/xarW9lrNbb, Shohei Ohtani, 2018 Highlights. On the first point, Rendon has now only appeared in nine games this year. .hHLkAw input.left{padding-left:32px;}/*!sc*/ Ohtani's four-seamer and splitter approach the hitter along the same path: His fastball averages 4.6 inches of horizontal movement, and his splitter averages 4.2 inches of horizontal movement. .mHQYb header.mlb-header .icon *{fill:currentColor;}/*!sc*/ .hspSPq .buttonstyle__Label-sc-vlv7w5-0{font-family:"proxima-nova","open Sans","Helvetica","Arial",sans-serif;}/*!sc*/ Shohei Ohtani threw a nasty split-fingered fastball in the first inning on Sunday that raised the eyebrows of Angels manager Joe Maddon, who is not used to seeing his two-way star go to his. .mHQYb header.mlb-header .header__nav-top__button.account{-webkit-box-pack:end;-webkit-justify-content:flex-end;-ms-flex-pack:end;justify-content:flex-end;padding:0 0 0 4px;white-space:nowrap;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;}/*!sc*/ This season, it's averaging 14.1 inches of sweep from right to left, which is 7.9 inches above average -- fifth best among all sliders. Pedro on Ohtani's Splitter - MLB Tonight | Shohei Ohtani's splitter has Angels' Mike Trout, Anthony Rendon rejoin lineup as Shohei Ohtani two .mHQYb header.mlb-header .header__nav-top .header__nav-top__button-menu--icon span:nth-child(2),.mHQYb header.mlb-header .header__nav-top .header__nav-top__button-menu--icon span:nth-child(3){top:8px;}/*!sc*/ Imagine being a hitter who has to tell those two pitches apart -- especially when Ohtani's fastball is coming in at 100-plus mph, and his splitter, an "offspeed" pitch, is coming in at 90-plus mph. The Angels are playing host to the Chicago White Sox this week, and Ohtani is set to pitch. The reigning MVP getting even better just in time to make a push for back-to-back trophies? The cutter was a fun experiment, but its not netting the results necessary to keep throwing it a significant percentage of the time. Neil Paine is the acting sports editor at FiveThirtyEight. Fifteen of those 18 strikeout victims went down swinging. Now that Ohtani is throwing both a four-seamer and a sinker, he can take advantage of two key pitch combos: four-seam/splitter and sinker/slider. 3-2, 10-inning loss to the Oakland Athletics, Ohtani was definitely feeling the splitter, Reports: 3 children dead, 2 wounded in attack at Texas home, Kellyanne Conway, George Conway To Divorce After Decadeslong Marriage: Report, School punished teen girl for working out in sports bra in 100-degree Texas heat, ACLU says, U.S. court won't require FAA to make airplane seat size, spacing rules, 'Extremely dangerous': Spike in illegal crossings at Canada-Vermont border has feds sounding alarm, SoCal in for cool start to weekend, but light rain makes brief return, "Botox In A Bottle" Sold Out At Target In 2 Days, AccuWeather: Clouds and wind into Saturday AM, Central Texas weather: Cold front brings cooler temperatures, wind. .ggWmAj{background:#ffffff;box-shadow:0 2px 4px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.2);max-height:64px;overflow:hidden;padding:8px 16px;position:fixed;top:0;width:100%;z-index:2;}/*!sc*/ Angels: Shohei Ohtani made some wild MLB history in win over Marlins A lot of his best. In case you were wondering, the one hitter to reach base against Ohtani's splitter is reigning American League MVP Jos Abreu, who drew a walk against it on a full-count splitter that Ohtani helicoptered way up and out of the strike zone. That includes an especially ridiculous 92.6 mph splitter to strike out Robert on April 4. .mHQYb header.mlb-header [class$='__nav-item__text'],.mHQYb header.mlb-header [class$='__nav-item__link'],.mHQYb header.mlb-header [class$='__button-text']{text-transform:uppercase;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;color:#ffffff;}/*!sc*/ The right-hander induced 17 swinging strikes and two called strikes with the pitch, which averaged 89.2 mph, and he struck out the side Seth Brown, Yan Gomes and Elvis Andrus with splitters in the seventh. .mHQYb header.mlb-header .header__nav-side__nav-item .icon__nav-item{margin-right:8px;width:18px;height:14px;float:left;-webkit-flex-shrink:0;-ms-flex-negative:0;flex-shrink:0;}/*!sc*/ It was a really good one, and I looked at [pitching coach Matt Wise] and said, Splitter? That includes an especially ridiculous 92.6 mph splitter to strike out Robert on April 4. .ggWmAj .sticky-header__share button{font-weight:600;}/*!sc*/ .mHQYb header.mlb-header .header__nav-side__main-nav ::-webkit-scrollbar{width:0px;}/*!sc*/ .mHQYb header.mlb-header .header__nav-top__button{background:none;border:none;padding:0 16px 0 0;font-size:14px;font-weight:bold;display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;}/*!sc*/ window.adobeAnalytics = {"reportingSuiteId":"mlbglobal08,mlbcom08","linkInternalFilters":"mlb"} .mHQYb header.mlb-header .header__nav-top__sponsor-url-logos > *{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:end;-webkit-justify-content:flex-end;-ms-flex-pack:end;justify-content:flex-end;}/*!sc*/ It was a no-doubter, as it left the bat at 102.7 mph and . body{margin:0;}/*!sc*/ .mHQYb header.mlb-header .header__nav-top__sponsor-url-logos{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:end;-webkit-justify-content:flex-end;-ms-flex-pack:end;justify-content:flex-end;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;}/*!sc*/ Shohei Ohtani 's first spring training start for the Los Angeles Angels will be against his fellow countryman: The Athletics' Shintaro Fujinami. That's just as a hitter. I thought this game showed Japanese fans some good entertainment.. . @media screen and (min-width:1024px){.mHQYb header.mlb-header .header__nav-side__nav-item:hover{background-color:#057AFF;}}/*!sc*/ It was a really good one, and I looked at [pitching coach Matt Wise] and said, Splitter? Shohei Ohtani did in 2022 what no other player in baseball history had done. His splitter, thrown off of that, takes a vertical dive. .blUWSx .share-icon__close{width:18px;}/*!sc*/ In five non-cutter starts, Ohtani has a 1.95 ERA compared to a 3.26 ERA in seven cutter starts. data-styled.g66[id="textInputstyle__styledTextInput-sc-q34wel-2"]{content:"hHLkAw,"}/*!sc*/ If he gets two more starts, youre going to be more comfortable getting him to 150 innings next year.. data-styled.g141[id="sharestyle__Wrapper-sc-9nfkvu-1"]{content:"blUWSx,"}/*!sc*/ .mHQYb header.mlb-header .header__nav-side__nav-item:last-child{border:none;}/*!sc*/ .mHQYb header.mlb-header .header__nav-top{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;margin:auto;-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;-webkit-flex-wrap:wrap;-ms-flex-wrap:wrap;flex-wrap:wrap;position:relative;z-index:99993;padding:0 14px;background-color:#041e42;box-shadow:1px 0 5px #000000;}/*!sc*/ .mHQYb .p-search-item__team-logo{margin-right:15px;max-height:25px;width:25px;}/*!sc*/ .blUWSx .share-icon__button{background:none;border:none;padding:0;}/*!sc*/ ","type":"markdown"},{"__typename":"Video","contentDate":"2021-04-05T04:56:04.5Z","description":"Shohei Ohtani throws a few pitches over 100 miles per hour and gets pumped up after striking out Luis Robert","displayAsVideoGif":false,"duration":"00:00:25","mp4AvcPlayback":"https://mlb-cuts-diamond.mlb.com/FORGE/2021/2021-04/04/df1cc56e-437b5b74-ae564962-csvm-diamondx64-asset_1280x720_59_4000K.mp4","slug":"shohei-ohtani-gets-pumped-after-k","tags":[{"__typename":"Tag","slug":"gamepk-634637","title":"2021/04/04 cws@ana"},{"__typename":"Tag","slug":"teamid-108","title":"Los Angeles Angels"},{"__typename":"Tag","slug":"playerid-660271","title":"Shohei Ohtani"},{"__typename":"Tag","slug":"highlight","title":"highlight"},{"__typename":"Tag","slug":"pitching","title":"pitching"},{"__typename":"Tag","slug":"group-3","title":"group 3"},{"__typename":"Tag","slug":"international-feed","title":"International Partner feed"},{"__typename":"Tag","slug":"eclat-feed","title":"Eclat feed"},{"__typename":"Tag","slug":"yahoo-fantasy","title":"Yahoo Fantasy"},{"__typename":"Tag","slug":"1-yahoo-fantasy-feed","title":"1-Yahoo Fantasy Feed"}],"templateUrl":"https://img.mlbstatic.com/mlb-images/image/private/{formatInstructions}/mlb/cjxtqyzhtbfqwih2z62a","title":"Shohei Ohtani gets pumped after K","type":"video","url":"/video/shohei-ohtani-gets-pumped-after-k"},{"__typename":"Markdown","content":"The secret to Ohtani's splitter is the direction of its movement. Yeah, its been hard to keep my motivation up when were out of the playoff race, but Im gonna keep my head down and stay in there.. .ebrWqN{box-sizing:border-box;padding:0px;background-color:#f3f3f3;border-radius:50%;-webkit-border-radius:50%;}/*!sc*/