It has been a very different MLB season. Though it has seen a new attendance record, injuries, controversies, and inconsistency have hampered the same a lot. This includes the rivalry between the Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani and the Yankees captain Aaron Judge. It happened after the outfielder got injured. It gave a free run to the Japanese Star, who continued to shine and topped almost all the charts while inching closer to Judge’s 62 Home Runs record. But it seems there is a twist in the tale.

Judge has been on fire since his return from the injury. In comparison, Ohtani has struggled and is stuck at 44 HRs with no addition to it in the last five games. It not only has halted his dominance but also has hampered his chances of breaking Judge’s record. The tactics of his opponents have further complicated the situation for him, as they seem to favor his rival. The same was the story when the Oakland Athletics faced the Angels, which left the 2021 MVP confused and his fans angry.

Oakland Athletics’s Unique Strategy Left Shohei Ohtani Without a Single Hit

It has been tough the last few weeks for Ohtani. After suffering from the Cramps, the prized star faced an injury that shortened his pitching abilities for the season. Though he is batting even after the injury and did enough, the lack of hitting is clearly visible. And already short of the hits in the last few games, they thwarted Ohtani from making more by the Athletics in the latest game. It happened in the fifth and ninth innings when he was intentionally walked. It left him without any hit. Given that fans expected better, the entire episode left them angry.

A tweeter user shared a clip regarding it. It read, “Let Sho Play. Shohei Ohtani intentionally walked for the 2nd time today in the 9th inning against the Oakland Athletics at Oakland Coliseum. Lots of boos from fans who want to see Sho Go. Ohtani walked 3 times today.” According to mercurynews.com Athletics manager Mark Kotsay, denied all the allegations. He explained, “I know that everyone comes to see Shohei hit, and I didn’t understand why they didn’t boo last night when the umpire put him on for us.”

Read More: Can $360M Aaron Judge Compete With Injury-Impacted Shohei Ohtani as Epic Home Run Chase Nears Conclusion?

He added, “But yeah, in that situation, he can easily pop one out of the ballpark and we could be down 3-2 very easily.” Though Kotsay was right in his decision. But did they unintentionally help Aaron Judge? Let’s find out.

Will Ohtani Be Able to Break the 62 Home Run Record?

Although Ohtani has played overall great, the last few weeks have been difficult for them. And though he is currently at 44 Home runs and has only scored a single HR in his last ten outings. Moreover, he is averaging around one hit per game at the moment, but with teams intentionally walking him, the number can go down.