Ranking Shohei Ohtani’s Top 5 Games From His Rookie Year

On September 5th last year, Shohei Ohtani, the LA Angels, and every baseball fan got the worst news regarding Ohtani’s right ulnar collateral ligament in his right arm. After an MRI, doctors recommended Tommy John surgery for the rookie phenom. However, while that was an awful start to the day, the day ended with an entirely different mood.

The Angels had a game against Cleveland that night, and bad news wasn’t going to stop Ohtani from hitting in the three-hole come first pitch. And in his first at-bat, Ohtani continued his hot streak against Cleveland, taking an 0-1 pitch from Mike Clevinger to deep left field. A two-run home run to start his day was phenomenal, but Ohtani wasn’t anywhere near done.

He had two more hits on the day, including a second home run off Clevinger, this one to right field and to tie the game 3-3. He ended the day with  two singles, eventually coming around to score on one. It was the best hitting performance Ohtani put on all season, and on a day where he, the team, and fans needed it the most.

With this game, the thought process regarding Ohtani went from “we don’t get to see him pitch until 2020” to “wow, we get to see this guy hit everyday“. Ohtani had a flair for dramatics throughout his rookie year, from his first time hitting at The Big A, to this game, and especially….