When you met Lee Jung-hoo, what happened to the good fastball and control? Otani's 41st humiliation, a crumpled look at the unexpected result
Jul 14, 2025
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Ohtani started against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park on the 13th (Korea time) and pitched well with one hit, one walk, four strikeouts and no runs in three innings.
He showed off his stable control by throwing 36 pitches and hitting 25 strikes, and his fastball speed of 23 pitches was up to 99.9 miles and an average of 97.8 miles. The average speed was a little slower than 98.4 miles in the season, but he cooked the Dodgers' lineup with a strong ball power.
Ohtani, who pitched three innings for the first time since returning to the pitcher, showed his power by connecting the first five batters with consecutive outcounts.
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Then, in the second inning, Matt Chapman was grounded out to shortstop and Willy Adames was fouled out to third baseman, respectively. However, with two outs in the second inning, Ohtani walked Lee Jung-hoo straight. Boasting his perfect control, he looked embarrassed by the unexpected result.
The first 82.2 mile sweeper became a ball. Lee Jung-hoo was powerful enough to slightly lower his legs, but he left the strike zone. The second 98.3-mile fastball was a ball below the low zone. The 3rd pitch 92.3 mile cutter was so close to one-bound that it almost hit Lee Jung-hoo's foot. And I tried to throw a 95.8 mile fastball into the outside strike zone on the fourth pitch, but it also went off.
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Did something at-bat have an impact.
Ohtani, who played as a leadoff hitter on the day, grounded out to the first base in the top of the first inning. Then, when No. 9 Dalton Rushing entered the batter's box with two outs and a runner on second base after the Dodgers scored the first run in the top of the second inning, Ohtani waited in the waiting box.
Would this have affected the pitch in the bottom of the second inning. In response, local media Dodger Blue said, `Even considering the fact that Lee Jung-hoo was given a walk, there was no sign that Ohtani, who was in the waiting at the top of the second inning, had to quickly take off his helmet and other equipment and prepare for pitching.'
In the end, it should be considered that the corner work was not properly carried out in consideration of Lee Jung-hoo's accurate contact ability. The fact that he tried to put all 1~3 pitches close to the body suggests this. Wasn't it the intention to catch Lee Jung-hoo, who is facing him for the first time, by attacking his body. However, it was not a strike, but only three consecutive balls went in.
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Eliot Ramos, who struck out and threw an outfield fly ball to Ohtani, said "He threw aggressively to all the batters. I really liked the fastball, and it was especially dangerous for me," he said with a tongue-in-cheek.
Lee Jung-hoo is the 41st player in his career to allow a 'straight walk'. It's been two years since he gave up to Spencer Tokelson in the bottom of the seventh inning in an away game against the Detroit Tigers on July 28, 2023, during his time with the Los Angeles Angels.
In the third inning with a 1-0 lead, Ohtani allowed a 93.7 mile cutter to Yastremski after two outs and allowed a right-handed hit, but he sprayed Ramos with a 99.1-mile fastball toward his body to lead him to a fly ball to center field.
With this, Ohtani pitched nine innings in five games, marking five hits, two walks and 10 strikeouts, lowering his ERA to 1.00.
Ohtani, who pitched for the last time in the first half as a pitcher, is expected to continue his work to increase innings and pitches until the end of this month in the second half. In other words, it is expected to be in August to see more than 70 pitches and more than 5 innings.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
