Angels' Ohtani leaves start after collision at home plate

Shohei Ohtani left Sunday's start after a scary play at the plate when Jose Abreu knocked him over while sliding into home.

The Angels clarified that Ohtani was not removed for injury purposes, though the two-way phenom is dealing with general soreness and will be re-evaluated on Monday, according to Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com.

After Ohtani seemingly recorded the final out of the fifth inning on a strikeout, catcher Max Stassi needed to complete the putout by throwing to first following a dropped third strike. The throw was wild, and Abreu began running home.

David Fletcher's throw home to Ohtani was also errant, causing the pitcher to jump, and the sliding Abreu made incidental contact with him.

Ohtani stayed down for a short period before walking off the field unassisted. The right-hander was one out away from qualifying for his first win since 2018.

Steve Cishek relieved Ohtani, retiring Yermin Mercedes on a groundout to end the inning.

Ohtani's final line as a pitcher on Sunday includes three runs (one earned) on two hits and five walks while striking out seven over 4 2/3 frames.

Meanwhile, Ohtani also went 1-for-3 with a homer as the No. 2 hitter.

Sunday's outing marked the first time Ohtani was able to pull double duty as both a pitcher and hitter in an American League park, with the Angels forgoing the DH. It was also his first start on the mound since Aug. 2, 2020, when he allowed two runs on five walks over 1 2/3 innings before being shut down as a pitcher for the remainder of the season due to injury.