Watch: Chris Russo rips Shohei Ohtani-Mike Trout WBC showdown
Christopher "Mad Dog" Russo wants fans to know that Los Angeles Angels teammates Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout facing off in the World Baseball Classic on Tuesday night was no big deal.
As explained by Brandon Contes of Awful Announcing, Russo downplayed the drama of Team Japan's Ohtani striking out Team USA's Trout to clinch the WBC title during a Wednesday morning appearance on ESPN's "First Take."
"The game was awful," Russo said about Japan's 3-2 victory during a bizarre rant. "That game was a bad game, I was bored stiff. It was two outs, nobody on. It wasn’t like the bases were loaded, it wasn’t like he was the winning run at the plate, it wasn’t like he fouled off any pitches. He didn’t keep the at-bat alive by fouling off tough pitches. He swung and missed. They’re making this at-bat out to be the greatest at-bat in the history of Major League Baseball. It’s March 21. Can we take it easy?"
Per Frankie Taddeo of Sports Illustrated's Extra Mustard, ESPN personality Stephen A. Smith responded by reminding Russo that "theatre matters" as it pertains to big-time sports moments.
Predictably, media members, current MLB players and numerous fans blasted Russo for his take on the Ohtani-Trout showdown and for curiously comparing Tuesday's at-bat to all-time World Series moments.
An obvious over-the-top hot take admittedly meant to generate clicks and views from somebody such as Smith or FS1's Skip Bayless is to be expected considering the nature of such "debate shows."
Russo is not just merely a guest who occasionally appears on ESPN. He also hosts the daily MLB Network program "High Heat" and, thus, is meant to be taken at least somewhat seriously as a baseball pundit.
Russo's comments, aside, Tuesday's at-bat and the WBC, as a whole, meant plenty to both Angels superstars.
Trout made it known after New York Mets closer Edwin Diaz suffered a serious knee injury celebrating a WBC victory that serving as Team USA’s captain "is the funnest experience I’ve had on a baseball field." Ohtani, meanwhile, couldn't contain his excitement after he won his battle with Trout:
On Tuesday, Ryan Glasspiegel of the New York Post reported that Russo has signed a new one-year deal with ESPN for future "First Take" appearances. For better or for worse, viewers can expect more of what they received from the "Mad Dog" on Wednesday through 2024.
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