Shohei Ohtani removed from LA Angels game on Sunday due to muscle tightness

MVP Shohei Ohtani removed from Angels-White Sox game for ‘safety measures’
from Victor Barbosa, with YardBarker.com/www.yardbarker.com

The Los Angeles Angels may have dodged an MVP-sized bullet on Sunday.

Superstar two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani was removed late during the team’s 6-5 win over the Chicago White Sox on Sunday with groin tightness, but following the contest, and update from Ohtani himself provided some cautious optimism.

Ohtani’s interpreter, Mizuhara Ippei, also gave a response to the media that hinted that the injury may not be serious.

“For safety measures he was taken out of the game by the trainers,” Ippei said, per ESPN Staff Writer Bradford Doolittle. “He was completely OK with (being removed). But as of now, he plans on playing tomorrow.”
Prior to his exit from the game, the 2018 AL Rookie of the Year had gone 0-for-3 as the designated hitter. Ohtani was pinch-hit for by Jack Mayfield with two runners on and Los Angeles leading 4-0 in the ninth inning.

Last year’s AL MVP “appeared to ease up while running down the line while grounding into a double play during the eighth inning” according to Doolittle, an observation that Angels manager Joe Maddon agreed with.

“I think that was the cause, yeah,” Maddon said, per Doolittle. “I noticed at the end, he didn’t finish going, which isn’t like him.”