LOS ANGELES — After tossing two scoreless innings in Saturday’s 6–4 loss to the Astros, Shohei Ohtani spoke to reporters about his performance, the state of his swing, and how he’s approaching his ongoing return to pitching.
It was Ohtani’s fourth pitching appearance of the year and his second consecutive two-inning outing. While he delivered a clean performance on the mound, he acknowledged he hasn’t been as sharp at the plate recently.
Still Searching for Quality at-Bats
“Lately, I haven’t been having the kind of at-bats I want,” Ohtani said. “That’s something I need to reflect on.” While he noted he doesn’t feel lost at the plate, he mentioned that the contact he’s making just isn’t translating into results right now.
“For example, even when I feel like I’ve squared it up, like today, the ball ends up as a groundout to second base. It’s not that I feel completely off, but those little things can pile up during a slump.”
Still, Ohtani doesn’t sound overly concerned. “When it’s just a slight difference in timing or feel, that’s something that can come back quickly. It’s about continuing to work and making adjustments in practice.”
Building Back Up on the Mound
As for his pitching, Ohtani said his role right now is strictly about following the steps of his rehab process.
“It’s important to complete the innings that have been planned out. Just because I feel like I could go longer doesn’t mean I should,” he said. “It’s not always best to push ahead just because I feel good. I want to stay in sync with the team’s plan and my own sense of progress.”
He also noted that while his pitch selection sometimes depends on feel, he does make adjustments during the game based on what’s working. “There are times when I go by instinct,” he said. “But today, for example, I was making pitch decisions based on conversations in the dugout and what we were seeing in real time.”
Staying Grounded, Even on His Birthday
Saturday also happened to be Ohtani’s birthday, but he was characteristically understated about it.
“I don’t really see it as an age to be particularly excited about,” he said with a small smile. “But it’s always nice when people say ‘happy birthday.’ I just wanted to go about it like a normal day.”
Eyes on the Series Finale
After two straight losses to Houston, Ohtani said the team is focused on bouncing back in the series finale.
“We’ve lost two in a row, so the goal is to reset and try to take the last game of the series tomorrow,” he said. “That’s all we can do—move forward.”
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