ANAHEIM ― When it comes to Shohei Ohtani, the words “elite company” have become redundant. Elite company seems to be the only kind of company he keeps.• Ohtani became the second pitcher in Angels history to record 10 or more strikeouts in four consecutive pitching appearances. The first was Nolan Ryan, baseball’s all-time strikeout leader, who once struck out 10 batters in a franchise-record seven consecutive games.
• Ohtani also became the first Angels pitcher to start a game and hit a triple since Ryan on June 27, 1972. Since May 25, when the Angels’ record reached its high-water mark at 27-17, no team had scored fewer runs or struck out more. They struck out plenty on Wednesday – 17 of their 21 outs came via strikeout, and the 32 strikeouts between both teams set an American League record for a nine-inning game. The Angels atoned with a pair of big innings, winning in relatively easy fashion.