Blue Jays fans pack Rogers Centre to watch Angels' Shohei Ohtani
Toronto Blue Jays fans packed Rogers Centre to watch Shohei Ohtani on Friday, and the 29-year-old didn’t leave them disappointed.
In his first pitch with one out in the first inning, Ohtani crushed a pitch from Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman to give his Los Angeles Angels a 1-0 lead. That lead turned out to be short-lived, however, as Matt Chapman hit a solo home run of his own the next inning, and the Blue Jays took the first of the three-game series by a 4-1 final.
As for Ohtani, he went 2/4 at the plate yesterday to help improve his batting average to .301 on the season. He was lifted from the game in the ninth inning, however, as he was battling cramping in both legs. Afterward, Angels manager Phil Nevin said he would be re-evaluated before today’s game.
Blue Jays fans will be hoping Ohtani is back in the lineup, as he is undoubtedly baseball’s most exciting player to watch right now. Despite being on the opposing team, there were plenty of cheers heads from Rogers Centre on his home run, as well as several signs supporting him.
“My 1st MLB game, super excited! Let’s go, Jays, let’s go, Ohtani. I will enjoy 200%,” one sign read. Another fan made sure to mention how far they travelled for the game with a sign that said, “Go Ohtani. We came from Japan.”
Fans in Toronto are ready for the Shohei Ohtani show as the Toronto Blue Jays play the Los Angeles Angels at Rogers Centre in Toronto. #ShoheiOhtani #OhtaniShow pic.twitter.com/mVLIMq6thC
— Steve Russell (@SteveRussell) July 28, 2023
Unfortunately for Blue Jays fans, Ohtani wasn’t pitching yesterday as he was originally supposed to. A rainout Wednesday for the Angels’ game versus the Detroit Tigers resulted in a doubleheader Thursday and had Ohtani take the mound a day early as a result. He dazzled versus the Tigers, throwing a complete game shutout, racking up eight strikeouts while giving up just one hit.
Assuming he is in the lineup today, Blue Jays fans at Rogers Centre and watching from home will get to see his brilliance on display once again. Today’s game is set to take place at 3:07 pm ET/12:07 pm PT.
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