Today, Ohtani, a two-hitter, will 3G consecutive home runs explode? Three innings against Minnesota, a natural enemy for the first time in the second half of the season

Jul 22, 2025

Today, Ohtani, a two-hitter, will 3G consecutive home runs explode? Three innings against Minnesota, a natural enemy for the first time in the second half of the season
LA Dodgers Shohei Ohtani is circling the base after hitting a two-run homer in the third inning against the Milwaukee Brewers on the 21st (Korea time). AP Yonhap News



Today, Ohtani, a two-hitter, will 3G consecutive home runs explode? Three innings against Minnesota, a natural enemy for the first time in the second half of the season
Otani will take his first mound in the second half of the year. ImagesYonhap News
LA Dodgers Shohei Ohtani will make his first start of the second half.

Ohtani is scheduled to start against the Minnesota Twins at Dodger Stadium at 11:10 a.m. on the 22nd (Korea time). It is his sixth appearance of the season and first appearance in the second half since returning to the mound in mid-June.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts previously announced on the 19th, the first day of the second half, that `Shohei will take the mound at Dodger Stadium against the Twins on Monday night.'




This time again, Ohtani is scheduled to pitch three innings. In the game against the San Francisco Giants on the 13th, his last appearance in the first half, he threw 36 pitches in three innings, and he is expected to aim for 40 pitches against Minnesota.

Ohtani pitched nine innings in five games in the first half, allowing five hits and two walks, striking out 10 and blocking one run. There are no homers yet with a hit rate of 0.167 and WHIP of 0.78. The fastball speed is shooting a maximum of 101.7 miles and an average of 98.2 miles.

Today, Ohtani, a two-hitter, will 3G consecutive home runs explode? Three innings against Minnesota, a natural enemy for the first time in the second half of the season
Otani plans to throw three innings against Minnesota. ImagesYonhap News
The Minnesota starter is right-hander David Festa, who has thrown 48 innings in 10 games (nine starts) this season with 3 wins and 3 losses, a 5.25 ERA, a 0.245 hit rate and a WHIP 1.31. The average fastball speed is 94.2 miles, which is normal, but the change-up, the main weapon, has a swing and miss rate of 43.3%, ranking in the top 15% of the pitch value.




Minnesota is ranked third in the AL Central with 48 wins and 51 losses and eighth in the wild card, so it is safe to say that it is a team that has virtually given up on advancing to the playoffs.

With a team batting average of 0.242 and a team OPS of 0.714, the offense is in the middle and lower ranks. However, there are a lot of hitters with a single stroke, ranking 11th overall with 118 team home runs.

Leading hitter Byron Buxton is dominating the AL with a batting average of 0.289, 22 homers, 57 RBIs and an OPS of 0.925. Trevor Lanark (13), Harrison Bader (12) and Cody Clemens (12) have also hit double-digit homers, Matt Wallner (11) and Will Castro (10).




Ohtani pitched three times against Minnesota during his time with the Los Angeles Angels and pitched 17 ⅓ innings with one win, a 2.08 ERA, a WHIP of 1.10 and a 0.140 hit rate.

Today, Ohtani, a two-hitter, will 3G consecutive home runs explode? Three innings against Minnesota, a natural enemy for the first time in the second half of the season
Minnesota Twins signatory Byron Buxton. AP Yonhap News
Ohtani made his Dodgers debut as a pitcher against the San Diego Padres on June 17. He was expected to return to the mound after the All-Star break this season as he had Tommy John Surgery and shoulder surgery for the past two years, but coach Ohtani and Roberts decided to do a 'build up' on the actual mound and returned in mid-June.

He is still taking the mound as an opener who plays multiple innings, but is expected to complete the build-up as a starting pitcher who will be responsible for more than five innings in mid-August.

According to Roberts, Ohtani plans to fill four innings in the next game if he throws three innings easily against Minnesota. The scenario is that he will pitch four more innings and fill five innings in the next game. That is around August 10-12.

Unlike during his time with the Los Angeles Angels, Ohtani is pitching in a windup position when there is no runner. This is how Ohtani, who received two Tommy John surges, found the way to throw the ball stronger using his lower body.

Thanks to this, the effect of increasing speed is clear. Two years ago, the average four-seam fastball speed was 96.8 miles, but since returning this season, it has accelerated to 98.2 miles. However, it remains to be seen whether he will maintain his speed in his first appearance in the second half of the day.

Meanwhile, Ohtani hit a home run for two consecutive days against the Milwaukee Brewers on the 20th and 21st. It remains to be seen whether he will draw an arch in his first pitching and hitting game in the second half.





This article was translated by Naver AI translator.