Angels News: Shohei Ohtani Scratched From Monday’s Lineup

The hits keep coming for Shohei and the Halos.

Angels two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani has been scratched from the lineup for Monday’s game, Steve Melewski of MASN reports.

Ohtani is being scratched by the Angels.

— Steve Melewski (@masnSteve) September 5, 2023

This comes just about an hour after his agent, Nez Balelo, addressed the media for the first time since his torn UCL, saying a procedure would be “inevitable” for the two-way star.

Balelo did not say when the surgery would take place, and if Ohtani would be shut down for the rest of this season. However, the timing of him being scratched from the lineup definitely is interesting.

With the Angels out of the postseason race and clearly giving up on this season, it makes no sense for Ohtani to continue playing.

The best thing the team could do is shut him down for the remainder of this season, and allow him to start focusing on his impending free agency.

We’ll continue to update when we know more on why Ohtani was scratched. but for now, we know he won’t be in the lineup for Monday’s series opener against the Orioles.

UPDATE

The Angels tweeted that Ohtani was scratched due to right oblique tightness.