FREE on MLB.TV: Ohtani pitching, hitting 2nd
Sho-time is back Wednesday with a must-see pitching matchup in Anaheim.
Shohei Ohtani is on the mound for the Angels in MLB.TV's Free Game of the Day -- facing another ace in the Giants' Kevin Gausman. First pitch at Angel Stadium. The game will also air on MLB Network. As he has for much of the season, Ohtani will again be pulling double duty as a key bat in the Halos' lineup, in which he'll bat second.
Ohtani entered Wednesday's game as the reigning American League Player of the Week after he slugged six home runs and also picked up his third pitching win of the season last week. But he'll have his work cut out for him against Gausman and the National League West-leading Giants.
Here's a quick breakdown of today's matchup:
How they're doing
Giants: 47-26 (1st in NL West)
Angels: 36-37 (4th in AL West)
The Giants are rolling. They have the best record in baseball, and they've won eight of their last 10, including Tuesday's series opener in Anaheim, 5-0. The Angels could get back to .500 for the season and even the series with a win on Wednesday.
The matchup on the mound
Giants: Kevin Gausman (8-1, 1.51 ERA, 103 K)
Angels: Shohei Ohtani (3-1, 2.70 ERA, 73 K)
This one could be a pitchers' duel … and not only that, it should be a splitter showcase. Gausman and Ohtani throw arguably the two nastiest splitters in baseball. Opponents are batting just .075 against Ohtani's splitter (5-for-67), and .112 against Gausman's splitter (16-for-143). Those are the two lowest batting averages allowed by any pitcher on an offspeed pitch type with 50 or more plate appearances decided on it.
The player to watch
As usual, it's Ohtani. The two-way superstar is an MVP frontrunner, tied for the lead in the MLB home run race with 23 homers as a hitter … on top of his 2.70 ERA and 12.3 strikeouts per nine innings as a pitcher. All of Ohtani's starts are can't-miss games.
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Number of note
116 -- that's the combined number of strikeouts on splitters by Gausman and Ohtani in 2021. Gausman has 70, the most of any pitcher on an offspeed pitch. Ohtani has 46, the third-most, with only Lucas Giolito's changeup (65) in between him and Gausman.