How quickly the story has changed, the fears about what could go wrong for Shohei Ohtani replaced by anticipation of the exospheric heights he could reach. What started as a make-or-break spring has morphed into a season of renewed possibilities.
Two days after walloping a 468-foot home run over the batter’s eye at Tempe Diablo Stadium, Ohtani touched 100 mph with his fastball and struck out five Oakland Athletics over 1 2/3 innings Friday in the Angels’ 7-3 spring training win in seven innings at Hohokam Stadium in Mesa, Ariz.
Suddenly, the 26-year-old Ohtani resembles the two-way player who dominated Japanese baseball and was the subject of hyperbolic scouting reports.