The Los Angeles Angels beat the Atlanta Braves, 4-1, on Monday. Shohei Ohtani went 2-for-3, but was held without a home run for the third consecutive game. He was kept in the park thanks in part to the fact that he was hit by a pitch in the first inning and intentionally walked in the second. With the intentional walk drawing boos from the Atlanta crowd.
That's right. The home crowd is booing when Ohtani gets walked. And this is Atlanta, the home of the team with the best record in baseball and the guy currently chasing Ohtani for the NL home run crowd, Matt Olson. This is a fanbase that has been treated to good baseball this year and they want to see Ohtani hit, no matter what the consequences might be.
That's how big seeing Ohtani is right now. When he comes to town you have the chance to see history and people want to see history. This is Mark McGwire / Barry Bonds stuff, but if those guys averaged 11.6 strikeouts per nine innings as a pitcher. Let that man swing the bat!
This article was originally published on thebiglead as Atlanta Fans Booed the Braves for Intentionally Walking Shohei Ohtani.
