"He could put up some crazy numbers" - Reid Detmers believes Shohei Ohtani's 2024 season as a hitter could be scary for the league
Reid Detmers from the Los Angeles Angels is showing his concerns about facing Shohei Ohtani in the upcoming season. Without Ohtani on the roster anymore, Detmers must step up his game, emerging as the Angels’ ace in his absence. Detmers is quite wary of Ohtani, as he will only be hitting and not pitching in the 2024 season.
Shohei Ohtani is considered one of the best sluggers in 2023. He signed a 10-year contract worth $700 million with the Los Angeles Dodgers, making it the largest contract ever in sports history.
Last year, Ohtani hit .304/.412/.654 with 44 home runs and 95 RBIs in 135 games. On the pitching side, he had a 3.14 ERA with 167 strikeouts in 132 innings. Ohtani’s exceptional dual performance earned him his second unanimous AL MVP trophy. He is the first player in MLB history to unanimously win two MVP awards.
Shohei Ohtani will not be a two-way player in 2024 due to the elbow surgery he underwent. His surgeon expects him to be ready for hitting on the opening day of the 2024 season but likely would not return to pitching until 2025.
With him solely focused on hitting this season, Reid Detmers shared his fears on the Foul Territory podcast:
“I mean just him focusing on hitting for Like a whole year. That's, I mean scary. He already hit well when he was a pitcher,” said Detmers. “And just taking out a whole other position. That's a lot. Like that's demanding.”
Knowing Ohtani’s abilities, Detmers suggests that he can put up some insane stats this season.
“Just focusing on hitting for a whole year is. I mean, he could put up some crazy numbers.”
With Ohtani’s dominant performance with pitching and hitting last season, and his focus now being solely on becoming a hitter for next season, this could be ‘scary’ for other teams as well.
Angels urgently need to improve their roster this season
The Angels’ lineup relies on young players with Detmers likely being the top pitcher for the upcoming season. The team also has Patrick Sandoval, Griffin Canning, Tyler Anderson, Zach Plesac, and Chase Silseth. But they may not be the most experienced in the league.
The Los Angeles Angels need to strengthen their roster, to stand up against other teams’ strong rosters and strong players like Ohtani. The team can still add players to the roster, either by signing free agents or making trades.