MLB 2018 regular season thread

Not today!!!!

 

He's throwing 99-100 mph fastballs and 89 mph splitters.

 

And. it's over.

 

Yes. Me. He sucks.

 

As always, a lot will hinge on which stars will play through to the end and which they will rest for an anticipated run in 2023.

 

So we know Ohtani can dominate the A's, what about the rest of the league. It'll be interesting if he pitches in an NL ballpark and bats, too. Wonder where Scioscia will put him in the order.

 

I smell an ESPN fakakta stat!
"Ohtani is the first starting pitcher to bat in the first inning, when his team did not bat around, since ..."

 

I would really be interested to see who the last guy to do that was. Maybe somebody for the Cubs, since Maddon sometimes hits his pitcher 8th? Maybe some guy for the late 1950s Yankees, when Stengel sometimes hit Bobby Richardson ninth?

 

I’d be surprised if Ohtani bats higher than eighth while he’s pitching. Otherwise you’re setting yourself up for some big headaches and potentially running out of players quicker in the late innings.

 

There's a way around it. If he can play the outfield, you bat the right fielder ninth, then stick Ohtani out in right field after he's done pitching. Then you keep Ohtani in the middle of the lineup, and the pitcher's spot becomes the traditional No. 9 slot in the order.
If Ohtani gets shelled and has to leave early, you can probably accomplish the same thing with a double switch.

 

He doesn’t play the field. Or at least he hasn’t, and I thought the plan was he wouldn’t.

 

Where has he been hitting? Could always bat him first, get him an extra AB while he's in the game, and then it's more or less the same as him batting ninth once he's out and the lineup has been shuffled during the course of the game.