Over the course of his career in MLB, Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani has proven to be one of the most unique players in baseball history. After all, nobody even attempts to be a two-way player, let alone excels at both of them.
In that role, Ohtani has won the MVP four different times and appears to be on his way to the Hall of Fame. So, it raised some eyebrows this season when Dodgers manager Dave Roberts decided not to hit Ohtani during games he’s pitching. Of course, that didn’t last long, and Ohtani returned to the lineup while pitching on Wednesday night against the San Diego Padres.
Immediately, he made a statement. Ohtani hit a home run on the very first pitch of the game.
It’s actually been a down season for Ohtani offensively. That home run to open the game against the Padres was just his 8th on the season. Entering play on Wednesday, he has a .272 batting average and an .872 OPS. Those are good marks, but they’re down from his career averages of a .281 batting average and a .953 OPS.
On the other hand, Ohtani has been a force on the mound. He entered the night with a 0.82 ERA, 0.818 WHIP, and 10.2 strikeouts per nine. Those marks at ERA and WHIP are on pace to be career bests.
Shohei Ohtani Made History for the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday
GettyLos Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani
By hitting a leadoff home run, Shohei Ohtani gave himself a lead and would ultimately line himself up for a win. He also made history.
Ohtani became the first-pitcher to record a leadoff home run in a regular season game. That’s despite the decades that pitchers hit in the National League and, at one point, in the American League as well.
The distinction that Ohtani did this in the regular season is important. After all, he already hit a home run as a leadoff hitter in a game he was pitching. It just happened to come in Game 4 of last season’s NLCS.
Shohei Ohtani Continued to Dominate on the Mound for the Los Angeles Dodgers
GettyShohei Ohtani pitching for the Los Angeles Dodgers
If there was any concern that putting Shohei Ohtani back in the lineup would hurt his pitching, that wasn’t the case against the Padres. The Los Angeles Dodgers hurler threw 5.0 shutout innings.
In his 5.o innings on the mound, Ohtani would strikeout 4 batters. He did get into some trouble on the base passes, giving up 3 hits and 2 walks. Still, he avoided letting any runs get across.
That fifth inning proved particularly tough for Ohtani. The Padres were able to load the bases, but Ohtani got Fernando Tatis Jr. to ground into a double play to avoid any damage.
That’s going to end up helping Ohtani’s ERA but hurting his WHIP and strikeouts per nine. In a season where he’s hoping to compete for the NL Cy Young, and the competition is incredibly fierce, every one of these starts counts.
As it stands now, FanDuel has Ohtani at +500 to win the Cy Young. That’s tied with Chris Sale. Meanwhile, Paul Skenes and Cristopher Sanchez do have better odds at +240 and +250, respectively.
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