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OC Register: Shohei Ohtani fans should be patient, Hasegawa says


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TEMPE, Ariz. — Shigetoshi Hasegawa suggests that fans of Shohei Ohtani exercise some patience.

“He’s going to be a Yu Darvish or (Masahiro) Tanaka,” the former Angels pitcher from Japan said. “Right now, you can’t expect too much. That’s what I think.”

Hasegawa, who pitched for the Angels from 1997 to 2001, was in camp Wednesday, conducting an interview with Manager Mike Scioscia for Japanese television. Speaking to reporters afterward, Hasegawa emphasized the difficulty of the transition the 23-year-old Ohtani is facing.

“Even just for pitching, it’s pretty tough to adjust coming over here,” he said. “It’s not going to be easy, both hitting and pitching. But it seems like he’s enjoying everything. That’s the key. You gotta enjoy the moment.”

Hasegawa also said he’ll now be rooting for Ohtani, even though he was on the other side when he worked as a scout for the Orix Buffaloes and Ohtani was playing for the Nippon-Ham Fighters.

“He was the enemy so I didn’t like him,” Hasegawa said. “Now, he plays for the Angels. I gotta cheer for him.”

As for Ohtani’s daily routine, on Wednesday he threw a bullpen session and took some “light” batting practice in the cage, Scioscia said. Although Scioscia said Ohtani will not hit in games on days he throws in the bullpen, General Manager Billy Eppler said that won’t necessarily be the case during the season.

“He is cleared to hit in a game on a bullpen day,” Eppler said.

Ohtani will pitch next Friday, in a B game against the Milwaukee Brewers in Maryvale. The game, at 10 a.m. Arizona time, will be played at Maryvale Stadium, but will not be open to the public. Going by his current schedule, his next time hitting in a game would then be Sunday, at the earliest.

The first lineup

The Angels used all of their projected everyday players in one lineup Wednesday for the first time this spring, which allowed a look at Scioscia’s preferred batting order.

Ian Kinsler batted leadoff, followed by Mike Trout, Justin Upton, Albert Pujols, Kole Calhoun, Zack Cozart, Luis Valbuena, Andrelton Simmons and Martin Maldonado.

Kinsler, Calhoun and Cozart seem to be the variables, as any of them could hit in front of Trout or lower in the lineup.

“I think this lineup has a lot of flexibility,” Scioscia said. “We can certainly see how the groupings work moving forward when we get into the season. I think this is a great template to work off. If we have to adjust, we can.”

Also

Although Pujols was the DH on Wednesday, Scioscia said he came through Tuesday’s three innings at first base without issue. Pujols, who has played little in the field the past two years, is expected to handle significant time at first this year. …

Chris Young (strained calf) has been doing some swinging in the cage, even though he’s still in a walking boot, Scioscia said.

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