Your thought on Ohtani's pitching future

[moccasin]

To be honest, I always wanted him to concentrate on hitting. Every coach that has been around him since high school has said that he is much more suited for hitting. They've said he understands hitting, and that his swing is natural. No Japanese hitter has ever been able to hit bombs like that while going the other way. 

Pitching on the other hand, has been a struggle. His high school couldn't even get to the "Koshien" national tournament(Arguably the most popular sporting event in Japan), despite him starting every game and throwing at least 10mph faster than everyone else. He has upside for sure, and he has said he enjoys pitching more, but throwing 100mph doesn't automatically make you great. His mechanics have always been unstable, and his command is pretty average.

 This is just my opinion as a fan of his. I know the Angels need pitching, but I want to see how much he can do when concentrating on hitting alone.

[AngelStew43]

The number of injuries is off the chart.  I feel for the guy.  Maybe we should try him as a closer.  It may be better for his arm to pitch one inning 5 times per week than to pitch 5 innings once a week.

[failos]

It sucks because the allure of Ohtani was that he could throw 100mph fastballs and hit them.

He was hailed as the modern day Babe Ruth. Maybe it’s my fault for expecting too much, but damn is Ohtani special. It’s a crying shame he’s prone to injuries and can’t continue to be that phenom we thought he’d become.

I have no doubt in my mind that he’ll become a good hitter, but the allure is gone.

[hen3ry]

Thus far his attempts at being a pitcher have not stopped him from putting up good numbers as a hitter.  If this team ever makes a playoff series again, well, postseason baseball relies even more heavily on good starting pitching than the regular season does - this team has no aces as it currently stands, and doesn't project to have any in 2021 unless Ohtani makes a comeback.  Low downside, high upside potential, so I'm totally fine with him trying to pitch again next year.  

[Jay]

He's more valuable as a pitcher than a hitter, obviously.

What were the odds, really of this amazing "two-way phenom" thing becoming a reality?

 

[RallyMo]

He/the Angels need to see if he can pitch again next year. The Angels have to proceed like he won't be a part of the rotation, though. If he can pitch, that's a nice bonus at this point and he's certainly going to earn his salary in terms of offense. What can you do?

[ukyah]

On 8/7/2020 at 5:45 AM, AngelStew43 said:

The number of injuries is off the chart.  I feel for the guy.  Maybe we should try him as a closer.  It may be better for his arm to pitch one inning 5 times per week than to pitch 5 innings once a week.

closing out wins 5 times a week? you're adorable.

angel closers pitch 10 innings a month.