Best Ohtani in my memory, won in 749 days...Was it a weapon you saved, or which pitching expert admired?

Aug 28, 2025

Best Ohtani in my memory, won in 749 days...Was it a weapon you saved, or which pitching expert admired?
오타니 쇼헤이. Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Yonhap News Agency



Best Ohtani in my memory, won in 749 days...Was it a weapon you saved, or which pitching expert admired?
오타니 쇼헤이. Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Yonhap News Agency
First win after returning from injury. The pitch was also attractive.

Shohei Ohtani (31, LA Dodgers) started the game against the Cincinnati Reds at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California on the 28th (Korea time) and allowed two hits (one home run), two walks, nine strikeouts and one run in five innings.

The Dodgers beat Cincinnati 5-1 to win their fifth straight game. Ohtani became a winning pitcher for the first time in 749 days since the game against the San Francisco Giants on August 10, 2023, when he was with the Los Angeles Angels.




Ohtani, who has continued his pitching and batting career, underwent elbow surgery in September, and has since played as a batter.

After completing his rehabilitation, he returned to the San Diego Padres on June 17 this year, and there was no victory during his 10 appearances. All of them threw less than five innings, failing to meet the winning pitcher requirements.

He showed his powerful appearance for the first time in a long time. He allowed only two hits during five innings. He also walked two, but struck out nine.




In particular, the process of escaping the crisis in the second inning was outstanding. One out and runners on the second and third bases with a walk and wild pitches. There were consecutive strikeouts.

Best Ohtani in my memory, won in 749 days...Was it a weapon you saved, or which pitching expert admired?
APYonhap News
The use of breaking balls stood out against leadoff hitter Gavin Lux. He struck out swinging with an 81.9-mile (131-kilometer) curve thrown for the fourth time in 1B2S. The sharply curved curve fell precisely to the bottom of the strike, and Lux's bat was in vain. Rob Friedman, best known by the nickname of 'Pitching Ninja', posted on his social media, "I think it's his best curve in my memory." he said.

After the game, MLB.COM also used the curve effectively as a decision ball. On this day, Ohtani threw 23 curves, but in the previous 10 games, he threw only 11 in total. He highlighted that he has expanded the range of pitching operations by striking out four with only curves.




With Ohtani continuing his good pitching, the batters also gained strength. It started with Ohtani. He was dragged to 0-1 by going scoreless until the end of the third inning, but Ohtani, the leadoff hitter, drew a hit and turned the game around 3-1 with three hits after one out. Two outs later, a hit was added to make it 4-1.

Best Ohtani in my memory, won in 749 days...Was it a weapon you saved, or which pitching expert admired?
오타니 쇼헤이. Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Yonhap News Agency
Best Ohtani in my memory, won in 749 days...Was it a weapon you saved, or which pitching expert admired?
오타니 쇼헤이. Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Yonhap News Agency
After Ohtani went down the mound, the bullpen's good pitching continued, and Michael Confoto's wedge solo shot in the bottom of the eighth inning completed the Dodgers' victory.

After the game, Ohtani said, "Playing five innings will be an important call point for moving forward. We will discuss with the medical staff, the front desk, and the coach to decide whether we can play more than five innings."

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts also smiled satisfactorily, saying, `Today is a game in which Ohtani has completely found his rhythm.'

Best Ohtani in my memory, won in 749 days...Was it a weapon you saved, or which pitching expert admired?
오타니 쇼헤이. AP Yonhap News


This article was translated by Naver AI translator.