Straight Talk: Ohtani takes big swings with 2 HRs, inches closer to mound

"Straight Talk" is a regular feature in which The Sporting Tribune's John E. Gibson offers a full translation of media availability with Dodgers Japanese stars Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki. He will also help translate when Clippers star Rui Hachimura and L.A. Galaxy captain Maya Yoshida are asked questions in Japanese.

The job of interpreters in the heat of the moment is difficult without the ability to write down questions and answers and re-hear responses for proper context. That's where John comes in to help. John currently works as a Japanese-English interpreter and covered pro baseball in Japan for about 20 years. His experience as a sports reporter includes stints at The Orange County Register, The Inland Valley Daily Bulletin, The Redlands Daily Facts, The Yomiuri Shimbun’s English newspaper in Tokyo and The Epoch Times. 

COLORADO — Shohei Ohtani racks up four hits, including a pair of home runs, and drives in three to lead the way as the Los Angeles Dodgers routed the Colorado Rockies 11-5 at Coors Field on Monday night. Ohtani slugs a solo blast off compatriot Tomoyuki Sugano (12-6) in the fifth and adds a two-run shot in the sixth to give him 29 this season.

Q: Shohei, the four hits today – what were you just kind of feeling at the plate? What do you think allowed you the swings and obviously the power that you showed today as well?

Ohtani: Well, that’s something that I’m changing every day. I think what was big today was that I was able to get good pitches to hit and hit them well.

Q: This offense, as a total, was able to get back on track today. How good was it to see that just the quality of at-bats up and down this lineup?

Ohtani: It’s OK to be confident, but the hardest thing to do is to keep it going, so I hope we can all do it again tomorrow and beyond.

Q: Shohei, you rake at Coors Field – 21 games straight now. Anything in particular that you like about hitting in this ballpark?

Ohtani: Well, the fact that I hit well here gives me confidence and I can relax mentally when I go up to hit. And I don’t get tight, I just go up thinking about making contact and getting a good swing.

Q: How did you feel after the bullpen session the other day, and do you know when you’re going to throw another one?

Ohtani: I was good the day after and I’m going to see how it is tomorrow. If it’s OK, then I want to throw another bullpen, so we’re taking things one step at a time.

Q: You’re kind of past the worst part of this now and think you’ll be able to get through the rest of your ramp-up without any other setbacks?

Ohtani: Yes, that’s the reason we’re progressing slowly through this. That’s the hope, and I want to come back as soon as possible, of course.