Shohei Ohtani threw the fastest pitch of his MLB career on Saturday to Kansas City Royals first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino. The Los Angeles Dodgers star, who just returned to pitching this month after a near two-year break, unleashed a 101.7-mph four-seam fastball to Pasquantino in the first inning.
The funny thing is, though, that Ohtani's fastest pitch thrown in his entire baseball career was a 102-mph in the 2023 World Baseball Classic, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan. And who did he throw that pitch to? None other than Pasquantino.
After Saturday's game—which the Royals won 9–6 thanks to a two-hit, five-RBI day from Pasquantino highlighted by a three-run homer—Pasquantino quote tweeted Passan's factoid on X with a fittingly bewildered response.
— Vinnie Pasquantino (@VPasquantino) June 28, 2025
Reporters asked Pasquantino after the game about the bizarre fortune of seeing Ohtani's two fastest pitches of his career, and he gave a funny response.
"He keeps doing that to me," Pasquantino said, via MLB's Anne Rogers. "I need to talk to him."
Ohtani finished Saturday's game after pitching two innings. He struck out one batter, had one hit against him and walked on batter.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Vinnie Pasquantino Has Hilarious Response to Facing Shohei Ohtani’s Fastest-Ever Pitch.
