Well, let me tell ya somethin’ about this fella, Ohtani. They all talkin’ ’bout him, you know? Big news, always on the TV. Seems like a strong young man, that’s for sure. I seen him hittin’ them balls, my oh my, they go far! Farther than anything I ever seen, and I seen a lot in my days, let me tell ya. They say he used to pitch too, but now he’s just hittin’. Somethin’ ’bout his arm, I reckon. Elbow somethin’-somethin’, they call it. Doctors and their fancy words, I swear.
This Ohtani fella, he’s a hitter now, they say a “designated hitter”. What’s that mean? Means he just hits, don’t gotta run around catchin’ balls in the field. Good for him, I say. Savin’ his legs, that’s smart. He’s hittin’ real good too. Numbers and such, they always talkin’ about his numbers. OPS and WAR, whatever those things mean. Sounds important though, the way they say it on the TV. He’s the leader in those, they say. Top of the heap. Best there is, I guess. He must be eatin’ his vegetables, that boy.
- He hits the ball real hard.
- He runs fast, when he has to.
- He makes lots of money, I bet.
Now, they show him on the TV sometimes, just sittin’ there. Between innings, they call it. He looks kinda thoughtful, you know? Maybe he’s thinkin’ ’bout hittin’ another one outta the park. Or maybe he’s thinkin’ ’bout pitchin’ again. I dunno. But they say he won’t be pitchin’ this year, maybe not ever again. That’s a shame, seein’ as how he was good at it. Fast balls and such. Sweepers and splitters, they called ’em. Sounded fancy to me, all those different throws.
He used to throw real fast, they say. Ninety-somethin’ miles an hour. Can you imagine? That’s faster than my old man’s truck, I tell ya what. And he had that slider, too. Eighty-four miles an hour, they said. Still fast, but it moved all funny. Made it hard to hit, I reckon. And then that cutter thing, ninety miles an hour. He had all sorts of tricks up his sleeve, that boy. But now, it’s just the hittin’. Guess that’s enough, though. He’s still a star, even if he’s only hittin’. They still cheer for him, loud as thunder.
Folks are always talkin’ about him. He’s the best, they say. Gonna be the best, even if he don’t pitch no more. Barring somethin’ shockin’, they say. Like what, I wonder? Maybe he’ll start flyin’ or somethin’. That’d be shockin’, wouldn’t it? But seriously, they think he’s gonna keep on hittin’ good. And that’s all that matters, I guess. As long as he keeps hittin’ those balls and makin’ folks happy, that’s good enough for me. He seems like a nice young man, this Ohtani fella. Works hard, I bet. And that’s important, you know? Hard work and a good attitude, that’ll get ya far in life. Even if you can’t pitch no more, you can still hit. And that’s somethin’, ain’t it?
They talk about his elbow. Said he had to have it fixed, more than once. Poor fella. That must hurt somethin’ awful. But he’s tough, you can see it in his eyes. He ain’t gonna let nothin’ stop him. He’s gonna keep on playin’, keep on hittin’. That’s the kinda spirit you need in this world, I tell ya. Don’t let nothin’ get you down. Just keep on swingin’. And that’s what this Ohtani fella does. He just keeps on swingin’. And most of the time, he hits it a long, long way. Makes you proud, even if you don’t know him. Just seein’ a young fella doin’ good, that’s enough to warm an old lady’s heart. He’s a good hitter, that Ohtani. That’s for sure.
Tags: [Shohei Ohtani, MLB, Angels, designated hitter, baseball, OPS, WAR, pitching, fastball, splitter, sweeper, cutter]
