Ohtani (hamstring) not in starting lineup vs. White Sox

Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani won't be in the starting lineup for Monday afternoon's game with the Chicago White Sox after leaving Sunday's game with hamstring tightness. 

The Angels said Ohtani is doing well and is being held out for precautionary reasons. He was lifted in the ninth inning of Sunday's game, an eventual 6-5 win for the Angels. 

"He's doing better this morning. Obviously he had some tightness. We got him out of the game yesterday more as a precaution than anything. Like he told you guys after the game, he wanted to play today. But we're just keeping him out for one more day right now and we'll see how he continues to progress. He's not starting, but he's available off the bench for us," Angels trainer Mike Frostad said via Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register. 

“I was taken out for safety reasons. I was perfectly okay with it," Ohtani said Sunday through a translator.

After winning the American League MVP award last season, the 27-year-old has struggled at the plate through the first month of the 2022 campaign, slashing just .228/.283/.402 in 22 games. On the mound, Ohtani is 2-2 with a 4.19 ERA and 30 strikeouts in 19.1 innings.

The Angels head into play Monday 15-8, good for first place in the American League West Division.