Los Angeles Angels rookie phenom Shohei Ohtani hit his first home run in the major leagues in the first inning of Tuesday’s 13-2 victory over the Cleveland Indians.
He finished the game 3-4 with three RBIs and the homer.
Ohtani is a hard-throwing pitcher who has substantial power at the plate, which is why the Angels used him as the team’s designated hitter during Tuesday’s game, even though he was not the starting pitcher.
Feeling right at home. pic.twitter.com/Hl3Rgy9i6j
— Angels (@Angels) April 4, 2018
This was his second game playing as LA’s designated hitter. Even though it’s early in the season, Ohtani has batted 4-9 for a batting average of .444 in two games.
During his first start, he threw six innings, giving up three hits and three runs, but he still got the win. Ohtani has a strong arm and can hit 100 mph with his fastball. He also has a wide array of pitches in his arsenal.
Shohei Ohtani signed with the Los Angeles Angels during the offseason, although he was pursued hard by many other teams. Even though he was still under contract with the Nippon Ham Fighters in Japan, Ohtani was still able to come over because the Angels paid his former team a $20 million buyout.
According to Bleacher Report, “Under the collective bargaining agreement, anyone under 25 years old was defined as an international amateur, restricting them to a minor league contract with a signing bonus from a team’s international bonus pool.”
Each Major League Baseball team has a certain amount of money they’re allowed to offer to international prospects. The Angels had $2.315 million in international signing money to offer Ohtani.
Had Ohtani waited until he was 25 and he aged out of the international signing rules, there are rumors he could’ve signed for $200 million.
His next start is scheduled for this Sunday against division and state rival the Oakland A’s.