ANAHEIM — The schedule offered the top two American League MVP candidates a chance to present their case on the same field on Monday and as far as opening arguments go, a pair of resounding statements were made.
Shohei Ohtani hit a go-ahead home run in the fifth inning to lift the Angels to a 4-3 victory over Aaron Judge and the New York Yankees. Judge declined to go quietly, hitting his 50th home run of the season in the eighth inning.
Luis Rengifo and Mike Ford got the power party started for the Angels with two early home runs but the real energy started with Ohtani’s two-run shot into the seats in right-center in the fifth inning for a 4-2 lead following a two-out single from Mike Trout.
The Angels did all they could to win the MVP showdown, intentionally walking Judge twice in the first five innings. He grounded out in the first inning but in the eighth against Angels reliever Ryan Tepera, he put No. 50 434 feet into the fountain in left-center field to bring New York within a run and become one of 10 players in major league history with multiple 50-homer seasons.
The 6-foot-7 Judge is chasing the single-season Yankees record of 61 home runs established by Roger Maris in 1961.
Ohtani’s evening got off to something of a slow start when he grounded into a double play in the first inning and struck out in the third. But as Ohtani is wont to do, he was merely sizing up his opponent.
His no-doubt-about-it home run came on a 1-and-2 split-finger pitch from Yankees right-hander Frankie Montas, a former American League West foil from his days with the Oakland Athletics. Montas was dealt to the Yankees at the trade deadline earlier this month.
While Judge has delivered the better offensive season, what is left for MVP voters to decide is how much Ohtani’s pitching feats make up the difference. Ohtani was not on the mound Monday, with Angels starter Jose Suarez giving up two runs on three hits over six innings with three walks and six strikeouts.
While Angels interim manager Phil Nevin knows both MVP candidates well from his time on the coaching staff of both clubs, he was not ashamed to admit to some recency bias as the anticipation built before Monday’s series opener.
“I’ve told you guys, as much as I love the guy across the way (Judge), what our guy does – until somebody can come in and do those things offensively and pitch on the mound the way he does – as far as value to his team and this league, I think it’s Shohei,” Nevin said.
Ohtani is not scheduled to pitch in the series, robbing MVP handicappers of the delicious opportunity to see both top players go one-on-one. Yet Ohtani still is showing he can manufacture MVP points.
While Ohtani’s top-prize potential is the Angels’ biggest attention-getter in the series, the Yankees have added motivation. They still are working on extricating themselves from a second-half funk that has put their championship credentials in question.
The best team in the major leagues not all that long ago, the Yankees were merely the fifth best in baseball (record-wise) when the day started. And they weren’t even New York’s best team.
While a five-game winning streak last week made it look as if the Yankees were on the rise again, they have now lost three consecutive games after dropping two at Oakland over the weekend.
The victory went down to the wire with right-hander Jimmy Herget earning his second save with the tying run on first base. Herget got the final out on a fly ball to the warning track in center field by Oswaldo Cabrera that was run down near the wall by Trout.
More to come on this story.
Check your watch, it’s Shotime. pic.twitter.com/Y12t1HWOUN
— MLB (@MLB) August 30, 2022
50 and counting for @TheJudge44! pic.twitter.com/WwwAHan8oZ
— MLB (@MLB) August 30, 2022
Nevin on the great team win vs the Yankees@Angels | #GoHalos | @EricaLWeston pic.twitter.com/7rVvcAwR5k
— Bally Sports West (@BallySportWest) August 30, 2022
Nevin on the great team win vs the YankeesRengif
— Bally Sports West (@BallySportWest) August 30, 2022
Revenge game?? @Angels | #GoHalos pic.twitter.com/qv3Bn3QgUB
— Bally Sports West (@BallySportWest) August 30, 2022
Ford enjoyed that homerun
— Bally Sports West (@BallySportWest) August 30, 2022
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