Diagnosing Shohei Ohtani’s Pitching Woes

There has been a lot of concern over Shohei Ohtani, and his rough spring training performance recently. Considering the hype he has come with, it is only natural for people to react as strongly as they have. Given his track record in the Nippon Professional Baseball League, and the presence of his impressive physical abilities, it is frustrating to see him struggle.

What must be considered more seriously, is the significance of the transition Ohtani is making. There has to be better recognition of his being human. He does not speak the language in a new country where customs, culture, and even life philosophies are often very different than back home in Japan. Based on the information available surrounding his appearances hitting, and pitching, it seems that this is simply a guy adjusting to his new life in the United States.

Also significant are the differences between the Baseballs,  such as the NPB ball that has higher seams, as well as the mounds in Japan that are softer than the contrastingly more solid mounds in Major League Baseball. These are factors affecting Ohtani, and his transition, that must be considered.

To begin, Ohtani’s pitching mechanics and delivery as a whole, seem to be somewhat different than they were in Japan. His approach and intentions have looked to be the same, but the execution has been slightly off. These gifs are slowed down to show the differences in Ohtani’s mechanics in Japan during the 2017 season, and 2018 in Spring training. Take a look at the location and execution of his fastball in said seasons:

2017 in Japan:

2018 Spring Training:

The key aspect to watch here is the contrast in the times it takes him to bring the ball to the plate. In real time, from the start of his throwing motion to when he releases the Baseball, Ohtani throws the ball in 1.8 seconds in 2017. In contrast, during his most recent Cactus League start in the second gif, he releases the ball in 2.2 seconds following the beginning of his throwing motion. Is he trying to reach back for more velocity this spring? His mechanics seem to indicate such a suggestion.

Looking at the freeze frame just after he releases the ball, Ohtani’s arm slot is higher on the left than on the right. Ohtani’s back foot is higher than it was previously. His whole body is slightly more upright, his arm is further behind his lower half, and he is not as balanced on the left in comparison with the frame on the right.

He does not drag his back foot on the mound anymore, the way he used to in Japan. This has caused him to have less balance in his delivery to the plate, which will be explained further later on. It is likely that Ohtani has no interest in sliding his foot across the harder mounds in the United States, which is clearly hindering the execution of his mechanics.

Furthermore, he is opening his body more in his pitching motion this spring, than he used to in Japan. Being more upright means that it’s harder for him to get on top of the Baseball, which makes it more difficult to keep the ball down in the zone when he wants to throw it there. Having his arm behind his lower half as seen on the left, is putting more unnecessary stress on it as well.

His balance point is off on the left, too – This makes it more difficult for him to sync his arm and lower half, as well as locate his pitches. Ohtani has better control of his body in the frame on the right, thus allowing him to have more fundamentally sound mechanics.

Often, when a pitcher is not fully finishing his delivery, he (Hopefully someday She!) is overthrowing. Ohtani has indicated that he feels hardly any anxiety surrounding his performance, however it seems that he may be pressing a little, based on the contrast between the mechanical execution of his delivery in Japan, and here in the United States.

The finish of the delivery with his back leg swinging up as it always does, is more pronounced and noticeably higher on the left than on the right. Given that the pitches were thrown to similar locations in both frames, this is likely an indicator of him putting more effort into his delivery:

His non-throwing arm and glove are much higher on the left, and his pitching arm is visible on the left while it is not on the right. His left arm is actually turned up-and-out in his pitching with the Angels, whereas in Japan his arm is folded inwards, and is much closer to his body. This is simply further evidence of his seemingly increased level of effort while pitching this spring.

There is also the possibility that he is hurt, as his change in mechanics would support, too. Maybe his elbow is not as healthy as it has been made out to be. Regardless of the cause, Ohtani is not himself at the moment.

What is interesting, is that the pace of his delivery has slowed, while also becoming more stiff and less explosive. The abilities are there for him to perform at a much higher level, and it would really help him to stay within himself more and execute the fundamental aspects of his delivery.

It is likely difficult for him to adjust to the mounds in the United States, which could be affecting his delivery and mechanics significantly. Above all else, it seems that this is a case of a 23 year-old acclimating to a completely new country and culture. He is learning countless new things about life here, and his poor performances this spring seem to be a reflection of the recent change in his life, more than anything else.

The most glaring issue in his pitching thus far, has been in his mechanics. The pitches he is throwing are objectively impressive, they just aren’t being placed where Ohtani wants them to be as a result of his delivery being out of sync. He is absolutely fine, and simply needs to make a few adjustments to get back to being the potentially dominant pitcher many envision.

Video in this piece was taken from MLB.com.