Dave Roberts Remains Confident Shohei Ohtani’s Hitting Will Improve

Shohei Ohtani was 0-for-2 with a walk as the fifth hitter in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ victory over the Atlanta Braves on Tuesday.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts explained his decision to drop Ohtani in the lineup stemmed from Chris Sale being a difficult matchup. But with right-hander Tyler Mahle on the mound for Game 4, Ohtani was only moved up to the cleanup spot in the Dodgers lineup.

And while Ohtani did not collect a hit for the first time in the National League Division Series on Tuesday, Roberts liked what he saw from the superstar.

“I think for me, the misses are better,” Roberts said after Game 3. “And I say the misses are better because they’re to the big part of the field versus hitting a ball on the ground to the right side of the infield. I thought the pitch selection was better in total with all the pitches that he faced [Tuesday].

“I thought the intent to stay on the baseball was better than it was in Games 1 and 2. So that’s encouraging. It’s not what we all expect, what he expects from himself. But I do feel that just the talent, the care, it’s going to happen. So I think it’s just up to all of us to keep winning baseball games, and then at some point he’s going to come to life.”

Ohtani followed the performance by going 0-for-3 with one walk in Game 4. Roberts again restated his confidence in Ohtani.

“It was just good to see him take an at-bat, get on base, be patient, steal a base and get going,” Roberts said. “So he’s scuffling right now, but I really believe that he’s going to come to life at some point. And I believe in him. Our players believe in him. So it’s just good to know that we can still win a series when he’s not doing what we all know he can do.”

The Dodgers advanced to the NLCS with a win despite the lack of production from Ohtani. L.A. now is set for an NLCS rematch with the Brewers, whom they swept last October.

Shohei Ohtani’s spot in the lineup

Roberts relayed that Ohtani was fully understanding of being moved down in the lineup, which is notable as he likely will be hitting out of the top two spots moving forward.

Freddie Freeman was the No. 2 hitter the last two nights after hitting cleanup in Games 1 and 2. Heading into the NLCS, Roberts said the likely scenario will keep 37-year-old could above Ohtani as the first left-handed hitter in the batting order.