Shohei Ohtani turned in a dominant start to help the Los Angeles Dodgers complete a sweep of the New York Mets on Jackie Robinson Day, but it came without him contributing as a hitter.
The four-time MVP was out of the lineup for the first time this season due to a bruise in the back of his right shoulder as a result of getting hit by a pitch on Monday night.
Manager Dave Roberts suggested before the game that the Dodgers may continue only using Ohtani as a pitcher in games where he takes the mound.
“Yeah. I mean, I think that it’s something that I’m going to keep an eye on,” Roberts said. “If it makes sense, but not just kind of do it proactively. I think it’s something that the game, Shohei, it’s got to make sense to not have your best hitter in the lineup.”
The Dodgers started Dalton Rushing at designated hitter in place of Ohtani, and he went 2-for-4 with a double and grand slam.
“If I know that Dalton can throw out a couple hits and drive in four runs, but he likes to hit,” Roberts said after the game when asked if it is tempting to keep Ohtani out of the Dodgers lineup when he pitches.
“He likes to hit, so I think it’s more of just knowing that you have another option if it makes sense. But I’m not going to, like I said before, I’m not going to just proactively sit him if my eyes aren’t telling me that he needs a blow.”
Ohtani suggested himself that he would be open to relinquishing two-way responsibilities in games where he pitches.
“Yeah, totally,” Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton. “I mean, we had a really good DH hit today, so I’m very open to that.”
It takes a lot for Ohtani to balance hitting and pitching on the same day, and he enjoyed having more time to focus on the latter.
“I actually had pretty productive time on being able to spend time on the game planning side of things,” Ohtani said. “So that felt pretty good.”
Shohei Ohtani’s streaks
Ohtani’s shoulder injury did not impact his performance on the mound as he held the Mets to just one run and collected 10 strikeouts over six innings.
His streak of not allowing an earned run ended at 32.2 innings, when MJ Melendez hit an RBI ground-rule double in the fifth. It was the longest streak of Ohtani’s career and had been the longest active stretch of not allowing an earned run among all pitchers.
What did stay alive, however, was Ohtani’s active on-base streak of 48 games. That was due to not making a plate appearance in the series finale.
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