ANAHEIM, Calif. — Los Angeles Angels coach Phil Nevin made it clear that a Friday night victory over the Houston Astros won’t solve all of his injury-riddled team’s problems.
“We’re not going to make up this big deficit that we’ve acquired over the last two weeks,” Nevin said ahead of Friday’s game. “We’re not going to catch up tonight. But we have to play better baseball to have any chance of doing these things.
In front of a huge crowd at Angel Stadium, the Angels only fell further into their sub-.500 hole – despite Shohei Ohtani’s best efforts. The Astros beat the Angels 7-5 in Game 1 after the All-Star break. But the Angels’ 45-47 record — good for six games behind the last wild card — might not even be the biggest storyline surrounding the team.
Although the Angels gave no indication of a desire to trade Ohtani, that didn’t stop players and fans from openly courting Ohtani at the All-Star festivities in Seattle. The August 1 MLB trade deadline is fast approaching.
“Come to Seattle!” chants rang out from Mariners fans when Ohtani was at bat during the All-Star Game. Mets pitcher and compatriot Kodai Sengathrough an interpreter, joked about putting his Mets cap on Ohtani’s head.
“I’ve never experienced anything like it, but I’ve definitely heard it,” Ohtani said of the Seattle chants through performer Ippei Mizuhara.
Still, Angels fans are showing Ohtani as much love as they can for as long as they can. Ohtani still gets the loudest cheers on the entire Angels roster, especially as star teammate Mike Trout recovers from a broken wrist. Ohtani’s jersey is the most represented in the entire stadium. Pockets of “MVP” chants erupted across Angel Stadium whenever the star was at bat on Friday.
“Angels fans come to see the Angels because they love the team, and [Ohtani] wants to do his best for them, and like he said, there are things he can control and there are things he can’t control, and everything he can control, he wants to do his best “said the interpreter of Ohtani at the All-Star Game.
Ohtani pitched five innings Friday and allowed five runs, four earned on five hits, to go with seven strikeouts. He finished his night with an ERA of 3.50. He opted out of the All-Star Game earlier in the week due to a blister. On Friday, Ohtani walked off the mound in the top of the sixth inning after allowing his third walk of the game to Astros left fielder Corey Julks.
“I saw something not right after [Ohtani] market [Julks], so I wanted to check on him. He mentioned that the finger was a little sensitive,” Nevin said of his decision to remove the star.
Ohtani, after putting on a shin guard, stayed in the game as the designated hitter. In five at bats, he had two hits and a run.
Ohtani’s blistered hand is something to watch out for. Keeping him in Anaheim isn’t a one-size-fits-all solution to the Angels’ problems, but for now, his presence is enough to keep fans in the seats.