Shohei Ohtani was making a legitimate case to be an MVP candidate from the designated hitter position through the first six weeks of the season for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
He had an on-base plus slugging above 1.100 and had the best batting average in baseball. But a small slump — potentially caused by a hamstring injury — has dropped him below a 1.000 OPS on the year.
He batted .200 with a .576 OPS in a 14-game stretch from May 18 to June 4, and although he got some of his mojo back on Wednesday with a homer and a single against the Pittsburgh Pirates, he still feels he isn’t out of the woods when it comes to the slump.
Ohtani spoke about the work of breaking out of a slump, and how everything that happens in the course of a baseball season is just a part of the process, according to Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
“It’s just every day, just working on getting better,” he said through his interpreter. “Sometimes I do well. Sometimes I don’t. So I feel like that’s just really part of the process.”
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts showed a bit more optimism when it comes to Ohtani’s recent efforts and what he’s been seeing in the last few games:
“It’s great. It is,” Roberts said of the positive signs from Ohtani on Wednesday. “You can tell he’s been taking some extra swings, trying to work through some things. To see him hit a homer to center field, to be on time for velocity, to take some borderline pitches – he’s obviously one of the best hitters in the game so to get him back in the zone and hit the ball hard like he did tonight is certainly a good sign.”
Ohtani has consistently been one of the best hitters in baseball over the last seven years, as Roberts said, so there was no concern when his slump began that he would get back to doing what he does best.
Baseball seasons are long and it is almost impossible to get through a full campaign without some down swings.
The Dodgers’ superstar will continue to work through this one and return to form even stronger on the other side.
Pirates rookie Paul Skenes viewed Shohei Ohtani as inspiration
Pittsburgh Pirates rookie Paul Skenes has impressed since making his MLB debut on May 11, and the Dodgers were the latest to see a steady dose of triple-digit fastballs.
Tuesday’s game against the Dodgers was notable in that it represented the first time Skenes faced Ohtani. The 2023 No. 1 overall draft pick was born in Fullerton, Calif., and attended Los Angeles Angels games to watch Ohtani play in person.
Although Skenes ultimately developed as a starting pitcher, he looked up to Ohtani for his success as a two-way player.
