A day after losing Mike Trout for several weeks to a wrist injury, the Los Angeles Angels were hit with another round of injury concerns during Tuesday’s 8-5 loss to the Padres. Ace/DH Shohei Ohtani was forced to exit his start because of recurring fingernail and blister problems on his pitching hand, and third baseman Anthony Rendon left the game after fouling a ball off his foot.
Ohtani was lifted as a pitcher in the sixth inning because of what turned out to be a blister on his right middle finger. This comes after Ohtani in his prior start suffered a cracked fingernail on that same finger. As a result of the cracked fingernail, Ohtani had been making his Tuesday start against San Diego on extra rest. For pitchers, blister and fingernail issues are not a matter of pain tolerance; rather, it compromises their ability to grip the baseball and apply appropriate finger pressure to their pitches. While it’s usually not a serious problem, in this instance it could affect Ohtani’s availability as a pitcher in the upcoming All-Star Game. Ohtani was also voted in as the AL’s starting DH.
In his start against the Padres, Ohtani struggled, which of course may be related to his finger issues. In five innings of work, Ohtani allowed five runs on seven hits. Along the way, he struck out five, walked four, and gave up a pair of home runs. Prior to the game, Padres outfielder Juan Soto boasted that his team would give Ohtani problems on Tuesday, and indeed that turned out to be the case. Soto, however, went 0 for 4.
As for Rendon, the club announced that X-rays on his leg were negative and that he’s been diagnosed with a left shin contusion. Thus far in 2023, Rendon is once again putting up disappointing numbers for the Halos.
In addition to Trout, the Angels also have core contributors like Brandon Drury, Gio Urshela, and Logan O’Hoppe on the injured list. The Angels have now lost six of their last seven and are four games out of final wild-card position in the AL.