We’ve all gotten so used to Shohei Ohtani accomplishing amazing things during his Major League Baseball career that it’s easy to just assume everything he does is about to lead to something magical. So it’s hard to fault Los Angeles Angels TV announcer Wayne Randazzo for calling an almost-home run “baseball history” right before it ended up being a flyout.
That was the case on Thursday when Ohtani stepped to the plate in the bottom of the eighth inning. The Angels led the Oakland A’s 8-7 and their superstar was 3-for-4 with a single, double, and triple on the day. If he were able to smack a home run here, he’d hit for the cycle, becoming the first player in MLB history to do so while also pitching in the game.
With runners on first and second, Ohtani launched the first pitch he saw deep into centerfield. Randazzo immediately lept into action to call this impending piece of history.
“OHTANI DRIVES ONE…LEFT CENTERFIELD…BASEBALL HISTORY COMING FOR SHOHEI…”
And that’s when the ball fell into the glove of the centerfielder, forcing Randazzo to immediately pull back on the call.
“…BUT ITS CAUGHT AT THE WALL…by Esteury Ruiz. He just missed.”
Ah well.
https://twitter.com/MPsMP4s/status/1651724075402764288
You can’t fault the Bally Sports West announcer for thinking that ball was out of there, though it does seem like there’s been a slight uptick recently in home run calls for non-home runs.
Don’t cry for Ohtani. Not only did he finish 3-for-5 with two runs scored and an RBI but he also earned the pitching win, improving to 4-0 with a 1.85 ERA this season.
About Sean Keeley
Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Managing Editor for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.