Shohei Ohtani hits 99.9 mph, strikes out 4 in spring training pitching debut
The Dodgers star looked ready for the season on Wednesday.
Shohei Ohtani made his first appearance on the mound of spring training on Wednesday. He sure looked like Shohei Ohtani. The two-way superstar threw 4 1/3 shutout innings against the San Francisco Giants, striking out 4 while walking 2 and allowing only 1 hit.
He threw 61 pitches total and topped out at 99. 9 mph per Baseball Savant. [ Draft your Yahoo Fantasy Baseball team for the 2026 MLB Season ] He didn’t hit, however.
Four strikeouts from Shohei in his first #DodgersST start! pic. twitter.
com/CU2EMxSRM8 — Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) March 18, 2026 Ohtani has spent much of spring training with the World Baseball Classic’s Japan team, working only as a designated hitter for a team that came up short against eventual champion Venezuela in the quarterfinals. Entering Wednesday, Ohtani had played only one spring training game for the Dodgers. However, he’s been stretching out as a pitcher behind the scenes and was slated to throw three or four innings on Wednesday, eventually going out for an extra batter in the fifth inning.