“Ohtani hoped to win.”
Ohtani Shohei (LA Angels) started as the designated hitter three times against the U.S. World Baseball Classic (WBC) national team on the 21st (Korean time) After recording 1 hit and 1 walk in 3 at-bats, he climbed the mound and recorded 1 walk, 1 strikeout and no run in the 9th inning.
Ohtani took over the mound from Yu Darvish (San Diego Padres) in the ninth inning with a narrow 3-2 lead. Ohtani broke off an uneasy start by giving up a walk against lead batter Jeff McNeil in the top of the ninth, but quickly accumulated an outcount by turning the follow-up hitter Jeff McNeil into a soldier.
The most impressive scene was the scene after two deaths at the beginning of the 9th inning. At the time, Ohtani faced off against Mike Trout, a major league hitter, in a situation where there were no second runners, and ended the game with a strikeout. The moment when the Japanese national team confirmed its third WBC championship title. After striking out Trout, Ohtani threw away his glove and hat, revealing his joy. However, many stories were hidden until Ohtani climbed the mound in the ninth inning.
Initially, Ohtani was allowed by the Los Angeles Angels to play a ‘double-edged style’ as a starting pitcher and at bat. However, it was unplanned for him to pitch as a closer. However, Ohtani, eager to win, was revealed to have contacted general manager Perry Minassian. 스포츠토토
Japan’s ‘Full Count’ said, “There was a story behind Ohtani’s role as a closer in the final match against the United States. In the midst of the winning streak, a phone call from Ohtani rang.”
According to the media, Minassian’s manager received a ‘video call’ from Ohtani prior to the US game. Ohtani talked about starting as a closer through a video call. And on the spot, general manager Minassian supported Ohtani’s closing appearance, saying, “If that’s what you want to do and there seems to be no problem, I will support you.”
Minassian general manager said, “Ohtani wanted to face the American line-up at this WBC and hoped to win. And he made it happen.” “(The final) There are many players who want to be on stage. Pablo Sandoval experienced it, Ditmus watched it on TV. Any player would want to play on the WBC stage.”
The face-to-face confrontation between Ohtani and Trout seemed to be a pretty impressive scene even for Minassian. General Manager Minassian added, “It was also a great thing in the baseball world. I wanted to see 10 more at-bats.”
Ohtani was originally scheduled not to climb the mound after the match against Italy (quarterfinals). However, he asked for permission from the Minassian general manager to win the championship, and finished the game, contributing greatly to the Japanese national team’s third championship ever. Ohtani, who played a big role in pitching and hitting, was selected as the WBC ‘MVP’ and succeeded in being reborn as the best player.
