As he prepares to head into free agency, Shohei Ohtani's future as a pitcher remains uncertain thanks to his being recently diagnosed with a UCL tear in his elbow. However, the Angels' two-way star plans to continue taking regular turns as the team's designated hitter. Indeed, Ohtani was in manager Phil Nevin's lineup for Friday against the Mets after the team's off day on Thursday, batting second and DHing.
Ohtani went 1 for 2 with a double, a run scored and three walks in the Angels' 3-1 victory. The double was a hard line drive, clocking in at over 115 miles per hour off the bat.
While Ohtani won't pitch again in 2023 and may be facing an even lengthier absence from the mound depending on the extent of his UCL tear, he figures to continue putting up big numbers at the plate. Through 127 games and 561 plate appearances as a hitter this season, Ohtani is slashing .305/.408/.665 with an MLB-leading 44 home runs. He also leads the majors in OPS, OPS+, total bases, slugging percentage, and triples. Additionally, Ohtani paces the AL in on-base percentage, walks, and runs scored.
At present, he's the heavy favorite to win the AL MVP award for the second time in his career, and that he's able to continue hitting through his elbow injury means he's unlikely to squander that favorite status. The possibility that Ohtani will chase 50 and -- perhaps -- even 60 homers the rest of the way will make for one of the most compelling stretch-drive subplots of 2023.
As for Ohtani's Angels, they've slipped from contention despite laudably positioning themselves as buyers leading up to the trade deadline. Thanks in part to a 6-16 mark in August, the Angels are presently 62-67 on the season and 9 1/2 games out of the third and final wild-card spot in the AL. Accordingly, SportsLine right gives Ohtani and the Halos less than a 1.0% chance of making the playoffs.
