MLB scouts malign Ohtani's readiness at plate: He's basically a high school hitter

While the Los Angeles Angels have prepared their roster to manage Shohei Ohtani's workload as both a pitcher and hitter, some major-league scouts are worried about the two-way star's abilities at the dish.

"He's basically like a high school hitter," one scout told Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports, "because he's never seen a good curveball. He's seen fastballs and changeups. And you're asking a high school hitter to jump to the major leagues?"

Passan spoke with eight major-league scouts, seven of whom had already seen Ohtani this spring. According to their unanimous reports, Ohtani would need at least 500 plate appearances - or a full season - in the minor leagues to hone his craft at the plate and become major-league ready.

"You don't learn on the job in the major leagues," another scout said. "You can't."

The 23-year-old top prospect is 1-for-11 in spring with one single, three walks, and four strikeouts. While Ohtani has looked more impressive on the mound, he turned in a poor performance against Mexican-league Tijuana Toros on Friday, allowing six runs over three innings of work.