When the Chicago Cubs came to Dodger Stadium to face the Los Angeles Dodgers over the weekend, the series became as much of a battle off the field as it was on it for the visitors.
The Cubs have been vocal about their criticisms of the Dodgers, with manager Craig Counsell calling the Shohei Ohtani rule “bizarre” and then doubling down on his issues with it, and Pete Crow-Armstrong continuing to trash-talk Dodgers fans.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts responded to Counsell’s comments by noting Ohtani is an “exception because he’s an exceptional player,” and it’s something that any team can use if they have a two-way player.
Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman also commented on Counsell’s criticism, saying he believed it was an odd thing to bring up and questioning the timing of the comments, he told David Vassegh on AM 570 LA Sports Radio:
“I don’t know. It felt very random and strange to me that he felt the need to bring it up. And when Shohei was on the Angels and MLB was considering this, they reached out to a bunch of teams, us included. And I said, ‘Look, from a competitive standpoint as the Dodgers, I don’t love it.’ But wearing my industry hat, and what’s best for Major League Baseball, it is to do everything we can for Shohei Ohtani to be in and stay in games. So that’s the part of him being able to stay in the game when he pitches and when he comes off the mound. The old rule would have been then the hitter has to come out as well.
“But I was able to look at what is best for the industry, and Shohei playing and playing more often and staying in games is what is best for this game, best for the fans and everything else. So that was when he was with the Angels.
And as far as the 13-pitcher rule, again, it is more that we have 13 pitchers. I had to clarify this with Jim Bowden, who said that we have nine relievers. We don’t have nine relievers. We have eight relievers, just like everyone else. We have five starters like everyone else. It’s just when Shohei is able and the rest makes sense, Shohei pitches also. It is not that we are carrying an extra reliever relative to others.
“So it’s certainly an advantage, but it should be an advantage. What Shohei does and what he is capable of is so unique, it should be rewarded. It should be celebrated. And everyone knew the Shohei rules and had an equal opportunity to sign him two years ago. So not sure where the Cubs were in that process, or what Counsell’s thoughts were on it then, but that seemed like more of the relevant time to voice it than now.”
Counsell clarified that his primary criticism was of the rule, not directed at the Dodgers or Ohtani specifically. But it’s also not something he was vocal about when the rule was put in place at the start of the 2022 season or any of the seasons after that, until now.
After the rule was put in place for the 2022 season, Roberts and the Dodgers supported it, despite Ohtani not being on their club at the time.
It’s easy for anyone to assume that if Ohtani were still with the Los Angeles Angels, or a lesser team, then the benefits of this rule would not be cared about as much.
However, as the back-to-back World Series champions and favorites to win again this year, the Dodgers are always going to be in the spotlight.
MLB’s Shohei Ohtani rule
The Ohtani rule allows teams to list a player as the pitcher and designated hitter/position player on the day he starts, then remove him in one role, but not the other.
To qualify under MLB’s two-way rule, players must meet both of the following benchmarks in either the current season or any of the two previous years:
• Pitched at least 20 Major League innings
• Started at least 20 Major League games as a position player or designated hitter, with at least three plate appearances in each of those games
Meanwhile, an amended designated hitter rule states if the DH is replaced, he can continue as the pitcher but can no longer hit for himself.
However, if the player is simultaneously replaced both as a starting pitcher and DH, he cannot be replaced by another two-way player filling both roles as separate people. Such can be done only once on the initial lineup card by identifying that the starting pitcher will bat for himself.
As for the roster size, a two-way player does not count against the pitcher limit, which caps teams at carrying 13 active pitchers on their 26-man roster.
Have you subscribed to the Dodger Blue YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows and giveaways, and stay up to date on all Dodgers news and rumors!
