Ohtani makes debut at Dodgers’ spring training camp
PHOENIX — They were camped outside of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ springtraining complex at Camelback Ranch since 6 a.m. Friday. And that was just the Japanese reporters waiting for the media entrance to open.
A crowd of about 70 reporters flocked around to get their first glimpses of Shohei Ohtani at spring training as a member of the Dodgers.
The Dodgers spent $1.2 billion this winter, with $700 million going to Ohtani, and enter spring as baseball’s team to beat.
“It’s pretty special to be part of,” veteran outfielder Jason Heyward said. “We’ve got stars. We’ve got future Hall of Famers. And, of course, we’ve got the biggest international star in the game in Ohtani.
“He’s an ambassador for the entire sport and we get to play with him.”
Ohtani spoke for about 10 minutes Friday, answering questions from English-speaking reporters for about seven minutes, saying that he feels great after undergoing elbow surgery in September, and believes he’s right on schedule to be the Dodgers’ DH this spring and be ready by opening day when they face the San Diego Padres in Seoul, Korea.
And yes, even though he has been in the big leagues for six years, he feels like a rookie again.
“So far all of the guys I’ve met have been great,” Ohtani said. “They’ve been very welcoming. Some guys I haven’t met, and am looking forward to meet.”
Ohtani divulged little during his press conference, but is confident he’ll have a strong season as the Dodgers’ full-time DH, and could even have his greatest offensive season yet. He lead the American League with 44 homers
last season, hitting .304 with 95 RBI and a league-leading 1.066 OPS.
“I believe there’s not one level, but several levels ahead offensively wise,” Ohtani said. “Its going to depend on whatt kind of lineup I’m in and everything, but at the end, I’ll keep the focus of trying to get better.’’
And right now, well, he couldn’t be more pleased at his progress after arriving early to camp.
“My swing effort-level wise is about 100% right now,” Ohtani said. “My next step is facing live arms and facing some velo.”
Ohtani won’t be pitching this season, but after undergoing a second major elbow surgery in five years, he feels the lessons he learned from that rehab process will benefit him.
“This isn’t my first time doing this rehabbing while getting ready for the season,’’ Ohtani said, “so I feel like it will be easier.”
When Ohtani underwent Tommy John surgery with the Angels in 2018, he missed the first month of the 2019 season, and started slowly. He hit just .250 with three homers and 13 RBI with a .692 OPS in 20 games in May.
Yet, Ohtani took off in June, batting .340 with nine homers and 22 RBI with a 1.091 OPS in 27 games in June. He finished the season hitting .286 with 18 homers, 62 RBI and a .848 OPS in 106 games.
“I can’t wait to watch him play,” Heyward said. “To be around this guy everyday will be special. But it’s not just one person. It takes a team. We’ve got to do a lot of things right to get to where we want to go, but we’ve got the potential to have a pretty fun year.”