Shohei Ohtani, the Los Angeles Dodgers' new sensation, has been the center of attention at the team's spring training, showcasing impressive progress in his recovery from elbow surgery, as noted by manager Dave Roberts. Despite not planning to take live batting practice (BP) initially, Ohtani demonstrated his formidable hitting prowess, hitting 13 home runs out of 26 swings, including five consecutive homers in one round. His performance has been a spectacle, drawing significant attention and admiration from teammates and fans alike. Meanwhile, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, another Japanese player making waves at the Dodgers camp, has impressed with his pitching, particularly noted by Freddie Freeman for his sharp fastball command. Tyler Glasnow's performance was also notable, throwing in the upper-90s and striking out Betts and Freeman in live BP. The early days of Dodgers spring training have been marked by a celebrity-like frenzy, largely fueled by Ohtani's presence and performance.
Taylor Ward took a big step forward, facing live pitching for the first time since being hit in the face by a pitch late last July, and more from #Angels camp: https://t.co/d6WpsOmHLe
Yoshinobu Yamamoto Impresses L.A. Dodgers Teammates In First Batting Practice Outing https://t.co/T9yj3gnZ1b
Yoshinobu Yamamoto against Mookie Betts in live BP. https://t.co/3KrjSE4HRL
Yoshinobu Yamamoto throws ‘nasty’ stuff, gets standing ovation in first Dodgers batting practice https://t.co/AUvfDWI3zj https://t.co/SJkYvEKpgj
Shohei Ohtani is "a lot further along" in his recovery from elbow surgery than the Dodgers expected, manager Dave Roberts said. Ohtani plans to face pitchers in live batting practice next week. https://t.co/rJKFPRsjLK
Cubs manager Craig Counsell’s spring training plan for Christopher Morel begins at third base. “Christopher's done so much with the bat that it's our job to figure out the best way to deploy it,” Counsell said. https://t.co/kaaDQCwWeR
The easy, fluid delivery belies the nastiness of Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s pitches. It’ll be exciting to see his complete arsenal once he’s fully ramped up. https://t.co/BmqmApNO6C
Charlie Freeman and Shohei in the duo we’ve all been waiting for 🥹 (via @Dodgers) https://t.co/1pkqYP1xdZ
As fans flock to catch a glimpse of Shohei Ohtani, the early days of Dodgers spring training have been defined by a celebrity-inspired freneticism. https://t.co/G1dods1U8t
Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell now says Christopher Morel will focus on third base in spring training: “Let’s give him some consistency at third base and see where we’re at, roster-wise, at some point in camp and then go forward from there.”
Starting to think watching Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitch is going to be very, very fun. https://t.co/KCGzacbzhy
At the start of Cubs camp, the plan is for Christopher Morel to focus mainly at 3B, Craig Counsell said today. Counsell wants to give Morel a chance at 3B and provide him some defensive consistency then see where the roster is at some point in spring and go from there.
News out of Cubs camp is that manager Craig Counsell wants Christopher Morel to concentrate on playing 3B to start spring training. Morel hit a combined 37 home runs in 2023 ( 26 in the big leagues )
Freddie Freeman facing off against Yoshinobu Yamamoto in Dodgers camp today! After facing him Freeman said “Very impressive…glad he’s on our team.” Our @PatrickDLyons is out at Dodgers camp today so make sure to keep up with him! https://t.co/TZ5GqLuPNk
A lot of impressed reactions to Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s live BP Freddie Freeman (who struck out in his at-bat) said, “That was incredible.” He noted how sharp Yamamoto’s fastball command on the inside part of the plate was, and how it sets up the rest of his arsenal
“I threw away, homer. I threw middle, homer. I threw middle-in, homer." One week in, Shohei Ohtani's batting practice sessions are the biggest spectacle of Dodgers spring training. More here on what his BP looks like & how it’s impressing his new team https://t.co/oUWWoOAvQ5
Inside a Shohei Ohtani batting practice, the biggest spectacle of Dodgers spring training https://t.co/HDwgY3NPqT
Dodgers fans got a behind-the-scenes look at the team's annual wing-eating contest with Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto in attendance Read more ⬇️
Ohtani taking hacks in Dodger blue https://t.co/xyf0WHwCsr
Shohei Ohtani said he wasn’t actually planning to take live BP today, after all. He is targeting to do it next week
Today Ohtani BP report: 26 swings, 13 homers — including five in a row during one round
great thing about Ohtani BP is that, like a lot of good hitters, he does often seem to focus on going to the opposite field for most of his rounds but instead of low line drives into the LCF gap the ball just…goes over the fence https://t.co/10FDS5or9J
Shohei Ohtani just took five swings in his second round of BP. Homered on all of them.
Tyler Glasnow is already throwing in the upper-90s, Dave Roberts said, and today he struck out Betts and Freeman in live BP When a fan asked him if the Ks felt good, Glasnow laughed. “We’re ahead of them,” he said. “So not a real strikeout.” Still, more positive signs from him
Dave Roberts said Ohtani might just be tracking pitches today, but said getting him in front of live pitching is a “big step” either way Roberts added: “He’s a lot further along than any of us not named Shohei would have expected.” https://t.co/DpEfXlPFC6
Shota Imanaga’s stuff has looked as good as the Chicago Cubs expected as the Japanese lefty pitcher gets to work at spring training camp. https://t.co/DvX1QC5SK5
The big event at Dodgers camp today: Alex Vesia will be throwing his second live BP of the spring Oh, and Shohei Ohtani will be one of the batters he is facing. Will be his first time facing pitching since his surgery
Wrote about Shohei Ohtani, and how it doesn't matter who is protecting him from behind in the Dodgers lineup so much as it matters who is hitting *ahead* of him in the lineup --> https://t.co/7TtfjOeWPx