Angels' injury woes deepen as Ohtani, Rendon leave game

The Los Angeles Angels are dropping like flies.

One day after losing Mike Trout to the injured list, the Angels saw two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani and third baseman Anthony Rendon depart Tuesday's game due to injuries.

Ohtani was pulled from his start on the mound due to a blister, the team announced, according to ESPN's Alden Gonzalez. Rendon, meanwhile, departed because of a shin contusion suffered when he fouled a ball off his leg.

Ohtani was hit hard by the San Diego Padres during the sixth inning, giving up three straight hits - including back-to-back homers from Xander Bogaerts and Jake Cronenworth - to start the frame. After Cronenworth went deep, he spoke to trainers and departed the mound. He left having surrendered five earned runs for just the second time this season.

Ohtani did not take his next at-bat as a designated hitter, being lifted for pinch-hitter Jo Adell in the ninth inning.

The blister is the second finger issue to affect Ohtani's pitching recently. A cracked fingernail forced him to leave his previous start, and he needed extra rest ahead of Tuesday's outing. The fingernail issue hadn't prevented him from hitting over the last week.

While Ohtani said it's now quite likely that he won't pitch in next week's All-Star Game, both he and the Angels are hopeful that he'll be ready to return to the mound once the second half begins.

"When I came out of the game I was kind of in the moment, so we will see about going forward the next few days," Ohtani said, according to The Associated Press. "On the pitching side, I have like nine, 10 days until the next start so hopefully I will heal in time."

Ohtani, who turns 29 on Wednesday, owns a 3.32 ERA and 1.10 WHIP with 132 strikeouts in 17 starts on the mound. Despite Tuesday's rough outing, he continues to befuddle opposing hitters, holding them to a .189 average that's the second-lowest in the majors. The two-way sensation also leads the majors in home runs, slugging, and OPS as a designated hitter.

Rendon, meanwhile, has already made two trips to the IL this season and was playing in just his fifth game since his most recent stint ended. He needed to be helped off the field after fouling the ball off his leg.

X-rays taken shortly after his departure came back negative, per Sam Blum of The Athletic. However, Rendon was using crutches postgame, and it's possible that he'll go back on the IL, manager Phil Nevin said, according to Rhett Bollinger of MLB.com.

"It's almost comical. It's just frustrating," Rendon said of his injury troubles, according to Blum. "I don't know what to do. I'm lost."

The 33-year-old came into Tuesday's game sporting a career-worst .687 OPS with two homers in only 42 games for Los Angeles this season. His only full campaign since signing with the Halos four years ago was the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign, when he appeared in 52 of 60 possible games and finished 10th in AL MVP voting.

The Angels are trying to make the playoffs for the first time since 2014 but face an uphill battle after being decimated by injuries over the last few weeks. Trout, who fractured his hamate bone on Monday, made it 14 Angels who are currently on the IL. Zach Neto, Brandon Drury, and Gio Urshela are among the regulars who are also injured.