It sure looked like the Dodgers could’ve used Shohei Ohtani’s bat in the lineup Tuesday night.
In a 2-1 loss to the Miami Marlins, Ohtani pitched just fine in a six-inning, two-run, nine-strikeout start, giving him a 0.60 ERA through five starts on the mound this year.
But for the second time this season, the Dodgers elected to leave the two-way star out of the batting order in a game he pitched as part of their plan to manage his workload this season.
Long-term, they hope, it will keep Ohtani fresh.
But on Tuesday, it led to a dreadful night at the plate from the rest of the team.
After coming up empty in a bases-loaded, one-out opportunity created by shaky Marlins defense in the first, the Dodgers (20-10) did little at the plate the rest of the night.
Miami starter Janson Junk kept them off-balance in a scoreless six-inning start, using a five-pitch to induce weak contact and collect quick outs. The Marlins bullpen avoided the kind of collapse that doomed them in Monday’s walk-off finish, giving up one run in the eighth but stranded runners on the corners to retire the side.
That would be as close as the Dodgers came to a comeback. In the ninth, they got an infield single from Andy Pages, but nothing else.
Backup catcher Dalton Rushing replaced Ohtani in as the team’s designated hitter –– and, so as not to disrupt the rest of the batting order, leadoff man –– but went 0-for-4 and struck out in the fifth on a pitch-clock violation (after home plate umpire Clint Vondrak evidently didn’t see him trying to call for time).
Few others were any better, with the Dodgers managing just seven hits on the night while leaving eight stranded on base.
What it means
Tuesday was the kind of game that could give the Dodgers pause before keeping Ohtani out of the lineup on his start days again.
After slumping last week, he’s been one of the team’s few stars who seemed to be snapping out of an early-season funk in recent days, coming off back-to-back three-hit games and having reached safely in 10 of his past 14 plate appearances.
The reason for limiting Ohtani to just pitching, of course, has more to do with his own workload concerns.
Still, every time the Dodgers struggle to hit without him, the more glaring his absence on nights like Tuesday will feel.
Who’s hot
As a pitcher, Ohtani wasn’t his sharpest against the Marlins, battling somewhat shaky command in a five-hit, three-walk outing that drove up his pitch count to a season-high 104.
However, he managed to limit damage well and tap into his 100 mph fastball velocity when he needed it.
His first run came as a result of his own defensive mistake, when he threw away a pickoff throw to second base after hitting Agustín Ramírez with a pitch in the second inning. The Marlins scored again in the fifth on an RBI single from Kyle Stowers –– marking only the second earned run against Ohtani in 30 innings this year.
After that, though, he worked out of a bases-loaded jam to keep the score close.
The Dodgers just couldn’t do enough at the plate to get him off the hook for the loss.
Who’s not
Pages has officially come back to earth after his blistering start to the year.
Though he avoided an 0-fer by legging out his ninth-inning single (which was aided by a bad throw), the third-year slugger is now just 7-for-40 in his last 11 games –– during which time his batting average has fallen from an MLB-best .412 to .324.
It’s still been an excellent first month overall. It’s just not ending on the highest of notes.
Up next
The Dodgers and Marlins will conclude this series on Wednesday afternoon, when Tyler Glasnow (3-0, 2.45) will square off against former Cy Young winner Sandy Alcantara (3-2, 3.05 ERA) in a marquee pitching matchup. Ohtani is expected to return to the Dodgers’ lineup as designated hitter for the rubber match.
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
