“Baseball genius” Shohei Ohtani (29, Los Angeles Angels) has hit a rare home run, this time with incredible bat speed. He’s no stranger to surprising baseball fans. 스포츠토토
Ohtani hit a two-run home run to the left-center field wall in the bottom of the ninth inning against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas, on Friday (July 15). It was his 21st home run of the season, tying him for the American League (AL) lead in that category.
With the Angels trailing 6-1 in the bottom of the ninth, Ohtani lined a two-seam 94.1 mph fastball from left-hander Will Smith over the left-center field fence for a massive home run that landed in the second deck of the stands. It traveled 453 feet (138.1 meters).
His bat speed reached 116.1 miles per hour (186.8 km/h). It was the highest batted ball speed for a home run hit by a left-handed hitter since Statcast began in 2015. It was 3.1 miles (5 km) faster than the previous record of 113 mph (181.9 km) set by Joey Gallo (Minnesota Twins) against the Houston Astros on September 26, 2017.
MLB.com picked up on the news, writing, “How many ways can Ohtani surprise us? You could count them, but it would be a futile endeavor because they always fall short,” and praised Ohtani.
The Angels lost 3-6 on the day, but Ohtani’s home run made Angels manager Phil Nevin smile. “He’s really good, and he’s a lot of fun to watch,” Nevin said.
Right fielder Giancarlo Stanton (New York Yankees) holds the record for the fastest pushed home run since Statcast began. Stanton hit a two-run home run over the right-center field fence in the first inning of the season opener against the Toronto Blue Jays on March 30 at Rogers Centre that reached 117.3 mph (188.8 km/h).