Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani don drop go No. 5 spot for order for their vital National League Division Series Game 3 against Atlanta Braves. Na the lowest place he don bat since Sept. 23, 2020.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts move the four-time MVP to that unfamiliar spot because All-Star left-hander Chris Sale start for Braves, and Ohtani dey struggle for plate since he return from lingering injuries wey make am miss time toward end of regular season. ‘Sale’s a different monster,’ Roberts talk.
The teams enter Tuesday tied at a game apiece, with their best postseason pitchers on mound, as Sale face Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the reigning World Series MVP. Roberts talk say runs go dey at premium, and spreading the left-handed hitters in him lineup against Sale na priority.
Roberts put Freddie Freeman for No. 2 hole and Kyle Tucker eighth, with Ohtani for middle. Ohtani na 3-for-15 with five strikeouts for him career against Sale. ‘We all understand that Sale’s going to be tough,’ Roberts talk. ‘But the guys I feel at the top have a good chance to get on base, and I do think that there’s going to be opportunities where the game, the situation, bleeds into Shohei’s at-bat.’
When Roberts inform Ohtani about the planned change Monday night, Ohtani joke say in September he bin consider telling Roberts to hit him seventh, a spot he last hit while with Los Angeles Angels in 2020.
This season, Ohtani hit .275 with 30 homers and 81 RBIs. He get two hits and two strikeouts in eight at-bats in first two games of NLDS. Ohtani play final five games of regular season after coming off two-week stint on injured list with nagging right biceps and left knee issues. He go 5-for-21 with an extra-base hit, eight strikeouts and a walk over final five games.
Roberts acknowledge say Ohtani dey chase pitches as he attempt to find him stroke and go continue to see pitches off the plate ‘until he shows some restraint.’ Roberts talk say he no expect Ohtani to hit fifth in Wednesday Game 4 against Braves right-hander Tyler Mahle.
‘I just feel this gives us the best chance to beat the Braves today and combat Sale, to combat what they’re going to throw after Sale,’ Roberts talk. ‘And I feel good about it.’ Roberts talk say the lineup move ‘not a lack of confidence in any player. It’s more of what I feel gives us the best chance to win today. And then that’s, in a short series, that’s the mindset that everyone has to have.’
Ohtani no be only high-profile hitter wey struggle in series and postseason. Braves slugger Ronald Acuña Jr. na 3-for-18 in postseason with no homers and he be 2-for-9 in first two games of series. Atlanta manager Walt Weiss never move Acuña from him No. 2 spot in lineup, but he slide Acuña from right field to designated hitter in late lineup change. Lane Thomas enter lineup in right field.
‘I just think it’s the ebbs and flows of a season where guys get hot and cold,’ Weiss talk Tuesday about Acuña slump. ‘And the same thing happens in the postseason. He’s one of those guys that’s one swing away from doing something really spectacular. So I don’t try to overthink it too much. It’s going to happen at some point.’
The Los Angeles Dodgers dey push two-way star Shohei Ohtani to fifth in batting order following tepid start to National League Division Series against Atlanta Braves. After hitting second in first two games of series, Ohtani drop to fifth ahead of Game 3 on Tuesday. Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Teoscar Hernández and Will Smith go hit ahead of Ohtani in Game 3. In two previous games in series, Betts lead off and Ohtani hit second.
Per The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts tell reporters say the move to fifth go be just for Tuesday game against Braves ace Chris Sale. A lefty, Sale don dey notoriously tough against left-handed batters over him career. Roberts add say when he approach Ohtani about moving down in order on Monday, Ohtani respond say he don consider suggesting doing so in September as he struggle through injuries.
Hitting fifth unusual for Ohtani, who never hit that low since 2020, when he be member of Los Angeles Angels. Ohtani never terrible in first two games of series, going 2-for-8 with two strikeouts. But other members of team outperform the slugger in NLDS. Freeman and Hernández, in particular, don ignite Dodgers offense. Smith, however, dey hitless in eight at-bats thus far.
For plate, Ohtani don dey worse against lefties over him career, though he still get excellent .853 OPS against them. That one actually higher than Smith career OPS against left-handers. Ohtani, however, come into playoffs battling multiple injuries. On Friday, he acknowledge say left knee and right biceps issues go impact am throughout postseason. Those same issues seem affect Ohtani in second half, as he hit .241/.322/.472 in August before collapsing with .200/.300/.233 line in eight games in September. At that point, team put Ohtani on injured list to give am time to recover for playoffs. Now playoffs here, Dodgers go try ease Ohtani into bigger role. While he hit second in order early in NLDS, combination of him performance and Sale presence on mound go drop Ohtani much lower than he don hit in recent seasons.
The Associated Press contribute to this report.
