The Yankees didn’t intentionally walk Shohei Ohtani this time, and it backfired in the seventh inning.
Ohtani crushed his 35th homer of the season over the left-center field fence to tie the game, 3-3, against the Yankees and Michael King, and he added a bat flip — stretching his arm out and extending the bat before tossing it — while starting the jog around the bases.
It was Ohtani’s second homer against King in his career.
The reliever’s disastrous stretch continued when he loaded the bases with two outs following the Ohtani homer on two walks and a hit-by-pitch.
But earlier in the game, when Ohtani strolled to the plate in another critical situation, the Yankees made sure he couldn’t drive in any runs.
The Angels had runners on first and third against Luis Severino in the fifth inning, with the game still scoreless, and instead of facing Ohtani, Aaron Boone intentionally walked him to load the bases and face Mickey Moniak.
Severino got ahead 0-2, threw three consecutive balls and eventually escaped the jam — and made the Yankees’ Ohtani decision pay off — when Moniak lined out to Oswaldo Cabrera in right.
But two innings later, even after pitching coach Matt Blake came out for a mound visit, the Yankees opted to face Ohtani.
King started off the at-bat with a sinker that missed the strike zone, and Ohtani fouled the next pitch off.
Then, King blew a 96 mph fastball past the Angels’ two-way star, generating a massive swing.
The next pitch, another 96 mph fastball and another ball in the strike zone, traveled approximately 403 feet.
Ohtani also singled in the first inning and doubled in the fourth inning, so with his fourth at-bat Monday night, he entered needing a triple for the cycle, which he compiled in 2019 and nearly did again in April — while also starting that game.
The homer against the Yankees also continued Ohtani’s strong start to the 2023 campaign, and each homer, each strong start, each productive at-bat only increases his value as the trade deadline nears, with the spiraling Angels potentially in a spot where they will be out of playoff contention.
