The Los Angeles Dodgers have scuffled a bit as of late, as they have lost 11 of their last 14 games. It could just be a “dog days of Summer” type lull, but the Dodgers have seen their National League West lead shrink to just four games, and it looks like it could be a tight race with the San Diego Padres down the stretch of the final two months of the season.
With just a week before the trade deadline, it’s clear Los Angeles needs to address the bullpen. The front office has been clear that they aren’t going to target starting pitchers, especially with Shohei Ohtani being built up, Blake Snell’s return looming, and Tyler Glasnow back in the rotation.
Ohtani on an Absolute Tear at the Plate
In Wednesday’s game against the Minnesota Twins, the Los Angeles Dodgers’ two-way star Ohtani tied a franchise record, hitting a home run in his fifth consecutive game. With a couple of players on offense struggling like Mookie Betts and Teoscar Hernández, Ohtani has had to pick up the slack, and he’s done so in a big way.
After homering in five straight games, Ohtani now leads the National League in home runs with 37, and the Dodgers have needed every bit of it. Only seven other Dodgers have completed the feat that Ohtani did on Wednesday, and it last happened by Max Muncy in 2019. Also, semi-recently, Joc Pederson did it in 2015. Los Angeles has a day off on Thursday, but Ohtani will have the chance to break the Dodgers’ record on Friday against the Boston Red Sox.
According to MLB.com’s Sonja Chen, Ohtani had 11 instances of hitting a home run in three straight games before his Tuesday night homer off potential Dodger trade candidate Jhoan Duran. Duran had yet to give up a home run this season before Ohtani’s two-run blast in the bottom of the ninth.
Ohtani in Full MVP Form Again
Before this torrid stretch of home runs by Ohtani, he had been slipping just a bit. Between June 16th and Friday, when he hit his first home run in this five-game stretch, Ohtani had hit .200 since his return to the mound. However, Ohtani has been one of the best pitchers for the Los Angeles Dodgers since returning to the mound.
In 12 innings on the mound this season, Ohtani has a 1.50 ERA and 13 strikeouts. He’s given up just two earned runs. Now those 12 innings have come over six starts, but he’s now up to three innings of work per outing, and could be extended further than that soon.
Again, the Dodgers are in a bit of a rough patch at the moment, and they need Ohtani to continue to be the unanimous MVP that he is. Ohtani passed Eugenio Suarez on Wednesday for most home runs in the National League, and is just two behind Cal Raleigh for the Major League lead. Ohtani leads the NL in slugging percentage, OPS, total bases, runs scored, and OPS+.
His dominance at the plate continues as a Dodger, and he’s even been moved to second in the batting order, which hasn’t messed with his production at all.
Shohei Ohtani Ties Dodgers Record With Impressive Feat