To Roberts, batter Ohtani is precious, meaning a pitcher's batting average of 0.222 in 14 games when he runs at full strength and takes the mound

Sep 30, 2025

To Roberts, batter Ohtani is precious, meaning a pitcher's batting average of 0.222 in 14 games when he runs at full strength and takes the mound
LA Dodgers Shohei Ohtani hits a solo home run in the middle of the seventh inning against the Seattle Mariners on the 29th (Korea time). AP Yonhap News



To Roberts, batter Ohtani is precious, meaning a pitcher's batting average of 0.222 in 14 games when he runs at full strength and takes the mound
Coach Shohei Ohtani and Dave Roberts are making high-fives after the season. AFP Yonhap News
Los Angeles Dodgers Shohei Ohtani, who returned to the mound in June and regained his ace-class pitching in September, will start the fall baseball as the third starter, contrary to expectations.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said against local media at Dodger Stadium on the 30th (Korea time) that Blake will start tomorrow. Yamamoto is the starting player in the second game, and Shohei will probably come forward if he goes to the third game," he said, announcing his rotation in the Wild Card Series (WCS) against the Cincinnati Reds.

The WCS between the two teams will be held at Dodger Stadium from the 1st to the 3rd. Game 1 starter Blake Snell and Game 2 starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto are officially confirmed, and Game 3 starter Ohtani is valid if the game is held.




In other words, if the Dodgers pass the WCS with two wins, Ohtani can start Game 1 of the Division Series. The Philadelphia Phillies, who are ranked first in the East Division, are waiting for the Division Series.

To Roberts, batter Ohtani is precious, meaning a pitcher's batting average of 0.222 in 14 games when he runs at full strength and takes the mound
Blake Snell is predicted to be the first WCS starter. AP Yonhap News
To Roberts, batter Ohtani is precious, meaning a pitcher's batting average of 0.222 in 14 games when he runs at full strength and takes the mound
Yamamoto Yoshinobu will start the second round of the WCS. AFP Yonhap News
Originally, Ohtani was mentioned as the Dodgers' first starter for this fall's baseball game. He pitched six innings for the first time this year against Arizona on the 24th, his last appearance of the season, allowing five hits and eight strikeouts. In the last three games of the season, including this, he continued his perfect pitching with eight hits, two walks and 18 strikeouts in 14 ⅔ innings. In his last appearance, his fastball speed was up to 101.2 miles, and he averaged 98.2 miles.

Ohtani will take the mound after a six-day break in the first round of the WCS on the 1st, so there is no problem. But why did Roberts postpone Ohtani to the starting lineup for Game 3. The ostensible reason is interpreted as the intention to give Ohtani enough rest. Roberts said "The more rest Otani (who came back from rehabilitation), the better he throws."




In other words, Ohtani, who slowly raised his pitching sense after returning to the mound in June, should rest well and take the mound. Ohtani has a 3.00 ERA in 12 games he took the mound after resting for more than six days this season.

In addition, the fact that Ohtani has never taken the mound in the postseason may have played a role. Ohtani, who made his major league debut in 2018, has never entered the fall baseball league when he was with the Los Angeles Angels, and since he rehabilitated as a pitcher after elbow surgery after moving to the Dodgers last year, he has only played as a batter in the postseason.

To Roberts, batter Ohtani is precious, meaning a pitcher's batting average of 0.222 in 14 games when he runs at full strength and takes the mound
Tani Shohei is scheduled to start Game 3 of the WCS. AFP Yonhap News
Another reason is consideration for Ohtani. In a game, pitching and hitting are stressful. For example, it is not that easy to throw the top of the first inning and enter the first at-bat in the bottom of the first inning, or to take the mound in the next inning without having time to breathe after running the base in the offensive inning.




In 14 games he started as a pitcher this season, Ohtani batted .222 (12 hits in 54 times at bat), had four homers, 12 RBIs, 11 runs scored, and six walks. In five games, he was hitless and silent. On the other hand, he marked a batting average of 0.287 (160 hits in 557 at-bats), 51 homers, 90 RBIs, 135 points and 103 walks in 144 games where he started as a designated hitter.

First of all, it can be seen as a rotation that contains Roberts' intention to focus on hitting in the first two WCS games. However, if the WCS goes to Game 3, it is expected that the postseason will make the most of the 'Double Tutoring' Ohtani.

Of course, Snell and Yamamoto's pitching condition at the end of the season was the best this season. Snell gave up seven hits and five walks in 19 innings and allowed one run in the final three games of the season. He had a 0.47 ERA and 28 strikeouts. Yamamoto also had a 0.49 ERA in the last three games of the season, allowing six hits and nine walks in 18 ⅓ innings and striking out 24.

In fact, Snell, Yamamoto, and Ohtani don't worry about starting mound no matter who goes out.





This article was translated by Naver AI translator.