- On what was in many ways a difficult afternoon, Shohei Ohtani still came strikingly close to accomplishing something unprecedented.
- He missed by only a few feet.
- Ohtani came to bat in Thursday’s eighth inning with a chance to become the first player in baseball history to hit for the cycle while also serving as that game’s starting pitcher.
- He then drove the first pitch he saw into deep center field, bringing a sparse Angel Stadium crowd to its feet — but Oakland Athletics center fielder Esteury Ruiz caught it right before crashing into the fence. It was a 389-foot out.
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Starting MLB Pitcher Inches Short Of Hitting HR, Triple, Double, Single In One Game
Los Angeles Angels' Shohei Ohtani runs to first on his way to a triple during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Oakland Athletics Thursday, April 27, 2023, in Anaheim, Calif. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
