Shohei Ohtani has made plenty of opponents, both on the mound and at the plate, look completely foolish, but the swing-and-miss he got out of Jose Altuve on Tuesday night in Houston was downright stunning.
After striking out and then grounding out in his first two at-bats against the Dodgers’ star, the second baseman stepped to the dish in the bottom of the fifth inning with base runners on the corners. Sitting on a 1-2 count, Ohtani threw a sweeper hoping to get Altuve to chase one away.
And boy, did he chase.
Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Shohei Ohtani pitches during the third inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre in Toronto on Apr. 8, 2026. (John E. Sokolowski/Imagn Images)
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Ohtani’s pitch never came close to the strike zone, but despite the pitch getting way away from him, Altuve stuck his bat out and did not come close to making contact.
The pitch from Ohtani would have hit a left-handed batter, and Altuve would have needed a ladder to even come close to reaching it, but nevertheless, he pulled the trigger.
Houston Astros left fielder Jose Altuve walks off the field during the game against the San Diego Padres at Daikin Park on April 18, 2025. (Troy Taormina/Imagn Images)
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The camera focusing on Ohtani’s face after earning the bizarre K is classic. It looked like he was fighting for his life to not start laughing at what he had just witnessed from Altuve.
Altuve finished the contest going 0-for-4 at the plate while striking out three times, but his Astros were able to get the best of Los Angeles 2-1 on the night on the back of four total hits.
Ohtani struck out eight batters in his seven innings of work on the mound, but the two solo home runs he gave up ended up being the difference in the tight contest.
Shohei Ohtani greets his Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in the bullpen before Game 7 of the World Series against the Toronto Blue Jays in Toronto on Nov. 1, 2025. (Ashley Landis/AP)
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Tuesday’s loss marks the third straight start for Ohtani in which his Dodgers squad ended up on the wrong side of the scoreboard.
With a loss to the Astros on Wednesday, the Dodgers will have lost their third straight series.