Major League Baseball slapped Chicago White Sox pitcher Mike Wright with a three-game suspension on Saturday for “intentionally” throwing at Shohei Ohtani a few nights prior.
White Sox manager Tony La Russa was also hit with a one-game ban for arguing Wright’s ejection.
Wright was thrown out of the contest on Thursday with two out in the ninth inning of a 9-3 White Sox loss for hitting the Los Angeles Angels two-way star in the calf with a fastball. Ohtani was not seriously hurt and was awarded a walk by the umpire.
Ohtani, who has been battling a sore arm and some hitting woes, is expected to return to the pitching mound on Sunday against the Oakland A’s.
He missed his scheduled pitching start Friday, and manager Joe Maddon has considered shutting the Japanese star down for the season on the mound.
But Ohtani threw 30 pitches on Friday, and the Angels decided he isn’t done yet.
Ohtani has pitched 115⅓ innings this season while also playing almost every day as the Angels’ designated hitter.
He has struggled at the plate in the second half of the season, batting .200 with just seven homers in 44 games heading into Friday’s contest.
This season, Ohtani also emerged as the best pitcher in the Angels’ starting rotation, with a dominant fastball and a stellar command of an array of breaking pitches. In 21 starts, he has a 3.36 ERA, 136 strikeouts and a 9-2 record.
In August, he had thrust himself into the American League Most Valuable Player conversation, notching his 40th home run of the season on August 18.
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Source : Baseball – The Japan Times