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LOS ANGELES — "Amazing. You couldn't have scripted it better."
The words of legendary Los Angeles wordsmith O'Shea Jackson echoed over the Spectrum Sportsnet LA broadcast as Shohei Ohtani rounded the bases, waving both hands in the air with an undeniable look of relief on his face as he finally put an end to his prolonged home run drought on May 12 at Dodger Stadium.
The Dodgers commentary team of Joe Davis and Orel Hershiser gave Ice Cube — who was in the booth after throwing out the first pitch on his bobblehead night — the opportunity to analyze Ohtani's homer, and it didn't disappoint.
"He lined that up, sent it right down the middle of the plate. Right where he loves it," Ice Cube said on the call. "And he smacks this thing all the way, goes yard."
Ohtani turned toward his teammates and motioned for the ball once he got back to the dugout, a lighthearted jab from the reigning back-to-back National League MVP toward himself, acknowledging his slump at the plate.
That third-inning tiebreaking solo shot off of San Francisco Giants starter Adrian Houser was Ohtani's first since April 26 — in 52 total plate appearances — against the Chicago Cubs. It was only his second in his last 112 plate appearances dating back to April 12 against the Texas Rangers. It's an unusual cold streak from the player who's hit more than 50 home runs in each of the last two seasons.
It had gotten to the point that Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said he's giving his two-way star the night off from hitting on May 14 and leaning toward the same decision for his scheduled start on the mound on May 13. If that does end up being the case, it would be the first time Ohtani goes back-to-back nights out of the lineup (for non-paternity leave or injury reasons) since 2021 as a member of the Los Angeles Angels.
But for Roberts, it's worth it to possibly give him some extra rest as he tries to balance the workload of being a full-time starting pitcher and hitter for the first time in nearly three years.
"I think the fatigue is starting to bleed into the mechanics," Roberts said pregame. "I think that most players get that towards the end of the summer and now I'm learning, managing Shohei, it's probably showing itself a little earlier, as far as the tax on pitching — and all that comes with it — to the hitting, too."
But for one night at least, Ohtani began to show some signs of finally breaking through.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ice Cube calls Shohei Ohtani home run in Dodgers-Giants game
Continue reading...
The words of legendary Los Angeles wordsmith O'Shea Jackson echoed over the Spectrum Sportsnet LA broadcast as Shohei Ohtani rounded the bases, waving both hands in the air with an undeniable look of relief on his face as he finally put an end to his prolonged home run drought on May 12 at Dodger Stadium.
The Dodgers commentary team of Joe Davis and Orel Hershiser gave Ice Cube — who was in the booth after throwing out the first pitch on his bobblehead night — the opportunity to analyze Ohtani's homer, and it didn't disappoint.
"He lined that up, sent it right down the middle of the plate. Right where he loves it," Ice Cube said on the call. "And he smacks this thing all the way, goes yard."
Ohtani turned toward his teammates and motioned for the ball once he got back to the dugout, a lighthearted jab from the reigning back-to-back National League MVP toward himself, acknowledging his slump at the plate.
That third-inning tiebreaking solo shot off of San Francisco Giants starter Adrian Houser was Ohtani's first since April 26 — in 52 total plate appearances — against the Chicago Cubs. It was only his second in his last 112 plate appearances dating back to April 12 against the Texas Rangers. It's an unusual cold streak from the player who's hit more than 50 home runs in each of the last two seasons.
It had gotten to the point that Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said he's giving his two-way star the night off from hitting on May 14 and leaning toward the same decision for his scheduled start on the mound on May 13. If that does end up being the case, it would be the first time Ohtani goes back-to-back nights out of the lineup (for non-paternity leave or injury reasons) since 2021 as a member of the Los Angeles Angels.
But for Roberts, it's worth it to possibly give him some extra rest as he tries to balance the workload of being a full-time starting pitcher and hitter for the first time in nearly three years.
"I think the fatigue is starting to bleed into the mechanics," Roberts said pregame. "I think that most players get that towards the end of the summer and now I'm learning, managing Shohei, it's probably showing itself a little earlier, as far as the tax on pitching — and all that comes with it — to the hitting, too."
But for one night at least, Ohtani began to show some signs of finally breaking through.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ice Cube calls Shohei Ohtani home run in Dodgers-Giants game
Continue reading...
