Shohei Ohtani is doing just about everything for the Los Angeles Dodgers heading into the All-Star break, as he leads the National League in several offensive categories.
Ohtani entered Saturday hitting .312/.396/.624 with 28 home runs and a 183 wRC+, becoming a staple at the top of the Dodgers lineup since moving into the leadoff spot for the injured Mookie Betts.
The 30-year-old owns a .300/.398/.569 batting line with runners on base and resides as one of the biggest threats in baseball in such situations.
Ohtani nevertheless has received some critiques in a few instances, seeing his swing get too long, or approach go outside what makes him successful, per Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
“Every situation is going to be a little different with runners in scoring position, the objective,” Ohtani said. “But the fact that I’m not producing speaks to the skill set that I have and making sure that I improve those skills and produce.”
Ohtani has shown he will expand the zone to chase a pitch, an area that Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the coaching staff is taking note of even if it comes under a desire of wanting to take on clutch situations:
“I think that he wants to be the guy,” Roberts said. “I think that certain times, you want to be the guy and they don’t want him to beat them. So there’s an expansion of the strike zone. He’s just got to continue to be disciplined in the strike zone. And that’s the challenge for a guy who’s a really aggressive swinger.
“He got one in the zone tonight and he did what we all know he can do. So that’s kind of a tell for him that when he is disciplined, good things can happen, instead of trying to force situations when they don’t throw the ball over the plate.”
Any warts in Ohtani’s game are minor because of his production as a whole. Ohtani’s presence, alone, sways how pitchers throw to him, leading to an abundance of left-on-left matchups and breaking balls diving away.
With right-handers on the mound, they’ve attacked Ohtani inside, hoping to avoid the big part of the barrel.
Trying to do damage is ideal, but with Ohtani at the top, he has a few options behind him who would have a high rate of success if he were to hand the baton with a walk.
Regardless of how the lineup shakes out when Betts returns, Ohtani should continue to have run-producing opportunities. His ability to create offense with one swing is a threat in of itself, which is why Ohtani might like to swing away, regardless of pitch location.
Shohei Ohtani reaches 200 home runs
Ohtani reached another milestone with the Dodgers as he slugged the 200th home run of his career.
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!
