What no one but Shohei Otani can do… The director was also amazed
Former LA Angels manager Joe Madden praised Shohei Otani.
U.S. media ‘Halo Today’ quoted Madden, who appeared on the Dan Patrick Show on the 3rd, saying, “Otani will start the game as a batter again after pitching more than 100 pitches. It doesn’t hurt at all. It’s amazing how it can be. “It’s something no one but Otani can do,” he said, praising Otani’s durability.
Ohtani, a pitching and hitting business, stood tall as a major league icon. It was expected to be impossible in modern baseball, but Otani surpassed prejudice. Otani, who advanced to the big leagues in 2018, challenged the pitching and batting combination, but was on the operating table due to an elbow injury. Since then, he has played only as a batter and took the mound again in 2021.
Ohtani, who is re-challenged for both pitching and hitting, showed his performance that can only be seen in cartoons. He continued his best performance as a pitcher and batter. Otani pitched in 23 games as a pitcher in the 2021 season and played 130이니 innings, recording 9 wins, 2 losses, and a 3.18 ERA. As a batter, he marked 138 hits in 537 at-bats, 46 home runs, 100 RBIs, and 25 steals. Otani, who performed brilliantly, was unanimously named the American League MVP.
This year, Otani became stronger. Pitcher Ohtani played 166 innings in 28 games, losing 15-9 with a 2.33 ERA. As a batter, he hit 160 hits in 157 games at 586 at-bats, 34 home runs, and a batting average of 0.273. For the first time in Major League history, he filled regulatory innings and regulation at-bats at the same time, and achieved double-digit home runs and multipliers in a single season in 104 years since Babe Ruth.
It was former coach Madden who watched Otani develop from a close distance. He took the helm of the Angels in 2020 and led the team until the middle of the 2022 season. Although he was dismissed from the Angels for his poor performance, he is a master who has won the Coach of the Year award three times.
Madden started his major league career in 1994. In particular, in 2016, when he was the head coach of the Chicago Cubs, he beat the Cleveland Guardians to win the World Series trophy for the first time in 108 years. Breaking the so-called Goat Curse, he put the Cubs on top.
I’ve been with the players for a long time, but I’m the first player like Otani. This is because it is not easy for both pitchers and batters to achieve outstanding results. Coach Madden described Otani’s tireless stamina as “like a monster.” Even though he can’t be with Otani, Madden Dog said, “It’s a wish to stay healthy in the future. I’m doing something really special. “I hope you will continue to show good performance for the next 10 years,” he said.
Meanwhile, although he was replaced by the Angels, Madden still has a strong desire to serve as a coach. “I want to work,” he said in an interview with local media. “I will go back if the fans and the club want to,” he said.