The Los Angeles Dodgers were unable to complete a sweep in the National League Division Series, but closed the out the Philadelphia Phillies in extra innings of Game 4 thanks to some help.
The Dodgers only had to use three relievers in Thursday’s game due to to another fantastic performance from Roki Sasaki out of the bullpen.
Tyler Glasnow received the start in Game 4, and delivered six scoreless innings that the Dodgers desperately needed after Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s shaky outing the night prior.
If the NLDS had reached a Game 5, the Dodgers were expected to turn to Shohei Ohtani with their season on the line.
Now that the Dodgers have reached the NL Championship Series, they are having internal discussions about Ohtani possibly starting Game 1.
“We’re going to talk about that. But that’s probably the case,” Roberts answered when asked if Ohtani would start Game 1 of the NLCS as a pitcher. “But with the off day after Game 2, we don’t know yet.”
Ohtani made his postseason debut as a pitcher in Game 1 of the NLDS. He ran into some trouble in the second inning because of a Teoscar Hernández defensive lapse, but was otherwise dominant.
The right-hander only allowed two base runners in his final four innings of work. In total, Ohtani allowed three runs on three hits while striking out nine over six innings.
The Dodgers have slightly eased their stance on Ohtani’s innings limit, as his last two outings have both gone six innings.
The Dodgers’ opponent for the NLCS has yet to be determined, but Ohtani did not pitch against the Chicago Cubs or Milwaukee Brewers during the 2025 season.
What makes most sense with Shohei Ohtani?
Although there might be a natural transition to have Ohtani start Game 1 of the NLCS on Monday since he would have potentially pitched this weekend, the Dodgers have also looked to line up his outings so an off day followed.
That would entail starting Game 2 of the NLCS, which then would leave Ohtani available for a possible Game 6 or 7.
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