It looks like the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim won’t be able to fulfill their fall baseball dreams anytime soon. Shohei Ohtani, 29, who is in the final year of his six-year contract with the Angels, is frustrated once again.
Ohtani started at second base and went 1-for-4 with a run scored in the Angels’ 2023 Major League Baseball home game against the Seattle Mariners at Angels Stadium in Anaheim, California, on Sunday (July 7), but was unable to prevent the team from losing.
The Angels lost 2-3 in 10 extra innings and dropped all four games of their home series against Seattle. They have lost six in a row, dropping their record to 56-57 on the season. The seventh wild-card spot in the American League (AL) widened to seven games over the third-place Toronto Blue Jays (63-50).
It’s not realistic to overturn a seven-game deficit in the remaining 49 games. The team made a big push for fall ball at the trade deadline, acquiring a slew of immediate contributors in starter Lucas Giolito, reliever Reynaldo Lopez, infielder C.J. Cron and outfielder Randall Grichuk, only to take a step backward.
Ohtani’s frustration is building. He hit his 40th home run of the season in Seattle on April 4, but after a four-run ninth inning dropped his team to a 3-5 deficit, Ohtani was seen swallowing his saliva in tears in the dugout. The frustration was evident on his face. But the Angels continued to lose the next three games.
It’s even less likely that Ohtani, who becomes a free agent after the season, will stay with the Angels. Even his closest teammates can’t bring themselves to ask him to stay. “It’s hard to tell him to stay here, it’s his life, and I can’t say anything about free agency,” outfielder Mickey Moniak said, according to Japanese outlet Junichi Sports.
Moniak continued, “If he decides to leave, he’s still a teammate now. We can only cherish the time we have with him and aim to win together.” The Phillies seem to have realized that this may be their last season with Ohtani.
According to MLB.com, Angels manager Phil Nevin said after the sixth straight loss, “I know everybody thinks we’re out of postseason contention now. But that’s okay. We still have 26 players and staff on this team,” and vowed to keep fighting until the end.메이저사이트
“It’s never fun to get swept,” Moniak said. It’s been a really tough series, and it’s a tough situation for everybody. But that’s baseball, and we’ve got to be ready to get back up tomorrow.”