Reviewing Shohei Ohtani's Spring Debut

   Willem Crowther, Baseball Writer

    Shohei Ohtani’s debut was made for the first time as a Dodger on February 27th, 2024. Los Angeles sees a bright future in Shohei as his name becomes further enveloped into the world of baseball. The Dodgers recently signed a 700-million-dollar contract with the young star. Unfortunately, however, he will be unable to pitch in this season because of his injuries, but his hitting still provides enough to give the team a huge boost. 

    On his very first at bat as a Dodger he was unable to make contact and was forced back to the dugout after striking out. In the third inning, he hit a ground ball into a double play which put an immediate negative light on the much-awaited and anticipated  debut.

    Not for long, though. On his third try, he made up for the strikeout and double play. On the 3-2 count Ohtani made a powerful swing sending one deep into the stands, giving one lucky fan a souvenir. 

     Ohtani has officially made his mark on the Dodgers after debuting with the team and hitting a Homerun in the 5th inning. He made his way humbly to the interview and stated, “I thought I hit a little too high initially, but the Arizona weather factored in a little bit.” 

    The Dodgers decided to put him second in the batting order. Leaving Mookie Betts at first and Freddy Freeman at third.

    The manager of the Dodgers, Dave Roberts, said he believes that Shohei Ohtani is, “built differently.” This puts some hope out into the Dodgers fan base to improve the already strong team even further.

     No matter what would have happened in that game, Ohtani has already proven himself to be a generational player who can make a huge difference for every single team in the league.