Shohei Ohtani threw seven scoreless innings Wednesday night and the Dodgers beat the San Francisco Giants 4-0, a win that snapped Los Angeles' four-game losing streak. Ohtani did it without taking an at-bat, a reminder that the two-way star is being asked to carry part of the game from the mound while his bat stays parked.
The outing was sharp from the start. Ohtani struck out eight, walked two and finished with a 0.82 ERA, a mark that ranks as the sixth-lowest through a pitcher's first seven starts since 1994. It was also the second-lowest ERA by a Dodgers pitcher through seven starts, trailing only Fernando Valenzuela's 0.29 start in 1981. Jacob deGrom had a 0.80 ERA through seven starts in 2021.
Ohtani, who said he feels young and at his peak, also said he had talked to the team and was fine taking time off. That has become part of the routine in his first full-season two-way role in four years. He was out of the lineup for a game he started on the mound for the third time in four turns through the rotation, then sat again for Thursday's series finale as the Dodgers continue with a strict six-man rotation.
The numbers on the mound are starting to look overwhelming. Ohtani ranked third in WHIP at 0.82 and 11th in strikeout percentage at 29.2, and his latest start only strengthened the case that his pitching is carrying a heavy load while his offense searches for traction. He has seven home runs and a.796 OPS, but he opened this month with three singles and a double in 36 at-bats over his first 10 games, a stretch that followed a 13-game homerless drought before he finally went opposite field for a home run Tuesday.
That timing has made the balance of his season easy to see. The Dodgers need his innings now, and he knows his bat has not matched his arm. Ohtani said he wants to contribute more offensively and is looking forward to doing that when he gets to hit again, adding that his last at-bat as a hitter Tuesday felt good and he wants to build on it. He also said the most important thing is that he is not injured.
There was even a moment in Wednesday's game that could have altered the line. Drew Gilbert flew out near the fence and Willy Adames was doubled off second base after miscounting the outs, a sequence Ohtani said could have really swayed his ERA. He added that luck is part of it, too, but the larger point is harder to miss: his run prevention has been elite, and his offense has not yet caught up.
Manager Dave Roberts said Ohtani wants to be the best pitcher in baseball, and at this point the Dodgers are getting exactly that. The unanswered question is not whether Ohtani can dominate on the mound anymore. It is how long Los Angeles can keep using him this way while waiting for the hitter to come back around.
