Fujinami, 28, will make his Major League Baseball debut Saturday against the Los Angeles Angels. Though he won’t enter a pitchers’ duel with Ohtani — who struck out 10 A’s over six scoreless innings in the Angels’ Opening Night loss — Fujinami will likely face the two-way star and three-time MVP Mike Trout in his formal introduction to A’s fans and the American game.
“He gets a little hesitant to throw his fastball,” Langeliers said. “I think that’s one of the focuses of the pitching coaches. His fastball is really good — sometimes there’s no need to go away from that. He’s been better about balancing that out with the slider and splitter.” Not only will Fujinami have to hone his command, but he will also need to adjust to the MLB starter’s grind.
“Everything I got over there had to go through a translator,” he said. “Stuff gets lost a little bit and everything takes twice as long when it has to be translated.”