Shohei Ohtani's Postseason Role as Pitcher Revealed

With two scheduled starts remaining in the regular season, Shohei Ohtani's role in the postseason has been determined, according to Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts.

Roberts told reporters on Sunday that Ohtani will serve as one of the Dodgers' starting pitchers during the postseason and will not be expected to have a role as a reliever.

"Yeah, we do," Roberts said Sunday of the team's plans for Ohtani. "Could it change down the road in the postseason? Possibly. But right now we see him as a starter."

In 12 starts this season, Ohtani holds a 3.75 ERA and a 6.1 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He first saw action as a pitcher on June 16, when he pitched in the first inning in a 6-3 win over the Padres.

The Dodgers will not give Ohtani any opportunities to pitch out of the bullpen during the regular season, Roberts said. If the situation arises where the Dodgers do, in fact, use Ohtani as a reliever in the postseason, Roberts is confident in the versatile 31-year-old's ability to come out of the bullpen.

"I think ideally, how we run things, we like to give a run of show for certain things, roles, before you do it in the postseason. But he has done it before in the (World Baseball) Classic," Roberts told reporters. "In the postseason, there's a lot of things that happen that are unforeseen."

In 2023, Ohtani entered the top of the ninth inning of the World Baseball Classic final between Japan and the U.S., bringing then-teammate Mike Trout to a full count before striking him out in an unforgettable moment in recent baseball history.

At this point in his career, one could argue, that was the closest Ohtani had come to an experience that models pitching in the postseason. Up until last year, Ohtani – a longtime member of the L.A. Angels – had not made the MLB Playoffs.

Because of a UCL tear, Ohtani was unable to pitch during the Dodgers' World Series title run, but Roberts hopes that the four-time MVP learned from the added pressure of the postseason.

"Last year, I think there were times where he was sort of even manic, swinging the bat, trying to get hits, chase hits, when guys were clearly trying to pitch around him," Roberts told reporters. "Where I think now, in this kind of moment in time where it's a playoff race, a pennant race for us, I think that he is locked in his plate discipline. And that's how a superstar manages the postseason, the pitching. And so I've seen that two grades better than it was last year."

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