Japanese phenom Shohei Ohtani is creating loads of expectation going into the 2024 MLB season; as Spring Coaching video games are beginning to be performed, he has but to characteristic within the lineup for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Nevertheless, his debut with the Dodger Blue is coming actually quickly.
The LA Dodgers themselves introduced on their Twitter/X account that Ohtani will make his debut with the time subsequent Tuesday in opposition to the Chicago White Sox within the Cactus League at Camelback Ranch, the place he would be the designated hitter.
Ohtani has been progressing in returning to motion after present process elbow surgical procedure in the course of the offseason, which is able to stop him from pitching till the 2025 season. Nevertheless, he’ll nonetheless be capable to hit within the meantime as a DH.
In the course of the weekend, Dodgers supervisor Dave Roberts instructed reporters that Ohtani confronted reside pitching, taking three at-bats in opposition to pitcher Jesse Hahn, through which ‘he seemed good’ in keeping with the skipper.
Ohtani’s great expectation
Ohtani, 29, batted .304 in 135 video games final season and led the AL in homers (44), on-base share (.412), slugging share (.654), OPS (1.066) and complete bases (325) whereas profitable his second MVP award. He additionally was voted MVP in 2021 and completed second in 2022.
By way of wage, Ohtani is about to be among the many lowest-paid Dodgers gamers in 2024, incomes a modest $2 million every season regardless of signing a record-breaking $700 million deal in the course of the winter as a result of deferrals he agreed to in his contract.
