Angels News: Shohei Ohtani Feels Bad About Timing of Physical Issues

Shohei Ohtani is exhausted. He doesn't want to rest because the Angels need him.

Shohei Ohtani is having mysterious cramps forcing him out of starts. He feels badly about leaving games since he understands the Angels need him to have a possibility to win.

Already with 40 homers, 160 strikeouts and 8.7 wins above replacement, is Shohei Ohtani on track for the best season we have ever seen? pic.twitter.com/R0dGUcLSem

— MLB (@MLB) August 5, 2023

“I'm doing what I can to prepare physically,” he said. “I feel bad it turned out this way.”

Ohtani didn’t sound on board with a suggestion that he could benefit from a day off.

“Games that I could take off, I really don’t think there are any more games like that,” he said. “If I can, I would like to play each and every game.”

Ohtani is an unusual baseball player. He is the Angels’ starting pitching ace with a 99-mile-per-hour fastball and devasting splitter. Also, he can hit, especially massive home runs regularly. He plays almost every game of the regular season, even after he pitches 7 innings. His fellow major leaguers marvel at what Ohtani can do.

As a pitcher, Ohtani has hurled 124.1 innings and has a record of 9 wins and 5 losses with a 3.32 ERA and 160 strikeouts. As a hitter, in 109 games, he has a .310 batting average with 40 home runs and 82 RBI. If Ohtani was a mere hitter, he would be a finalist for the American League MVP.

If the Angels had a better team, Ohtani would feel less responsible for the Angels winning. At the deadline, the Angels were buyers, hoping to earn one of the Wild Card spots, but the likelihood of this is slim. At 29, Ohtani needs more games off to rest and less pressure on him to help his team win.