Shohei Ohtani belted his 11th home run of the year Saturday but his Los Angeles Angels could not climb out of an early hole in a 6-2 loss to the Minnesota Twins.

The Japanese two-way star launched a long ball to right-center field for a solo home run that made it 4-2 in the bottom of the sixth at Angel Stadium.

Shohei Ohtani hits his 11th home run of the season for the Los Angeles Angels in the sixth inning against the Minnesota Twins at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California, on May 20, 2023. (Kyodo)

The Twins took control of the game by scoring three runs off starter Patrick Sandoval (3-3) in the first. Kyle Farmer led the way for Minnesota, driving in the opening run and going 3-for-5.

Ohtani, who this week became just the third Japanese player to hit 10-plus home runs in three straight MLB seasons, finished 1-for-4 with two strikeouts.

At Petco Park, Masataka Yoshida doubled in the first inning to go 1-for-5 as the Boston Red Sox's designated hitter in their 4-2 win over the San Diego Padres.


Related coverage:

Baseball: Orioles hand Blue Jays' Yusei Kikuchi 1st loss

Baseball: Shohei Ohtani hits 10th homer, flashes speed in Angels' win

Baseball: Japanese Hall of Fame slugger Futoshi Nakanishi dies at 90