Shohei Ohtani’s bat has gone quiet, but the Dodgers keep winning anyway.
That’s the big October takeaway so far. Ohtani has been fighting through injuries all year, and the second-half slump that followed has now carried into the postseason. Over the final stretch of the regular season and into these playoffs, the production just hasn’t looked like the usual Shohei show.
The numbers tell the story. In the first half, Ohtani hit 22 home runs, drove in 58 runs and posted a .953 OPS across 88 games.
After the All-Star break, he played in only 47 games and finished with a .772 OPS, eight homers and 23 RBIs. His batting average fell from .293 to .245, he walked less, and he struck out more.
The slide has only gotten colder lately. Since Aug.
19, Ohtani hasn’t hit a home run and has one RBI over a stretch that spans more than 95 plate appearances. He’s managed just one extra-base hit in his last 16 games, postseason included.
In three playoff games, he’s 2-for-10 with two singles and three strikeouts.
Even his spot in the order changed for Game 3, when he was dropped to fifth - the lowest he has hit in a batting order since 2020. The result was more of the same: a hitless night in the Dodgers’ 3-1 win. He struck out badly in his first trip, reached on catcher’s interference in his next at-bat, then flied out and walked to finish a quiet game.
None of it stopped Los Angeles.
The Dodgers got three runs off Chris Sale, with home runs from Kiké Hernandez and Freddie Freeman doing the damage, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto delivered the kind of outing that can carry a team deep into October. Yamamoto struck out a career-playoff high 10 and allowed just one run over seven innings.
With that kind of pitching, the Dodgers do not need a track meet to win. They just need enough offense to keep pace.
That’s been the key so far: depth. If Ohtani isn’t carrying the load, somebody else is. This lineup is built for that, with experienced hitters scattered from top to bottom.
Los Angeles scored five runs in Game 1 and backed it with a dominant outing from Tarik Skubal to take an early series lead. In Game 3, the Dodgers went after Sale even after he struck out six batters in the first two innings.
Hernandez, who had not started this postseason before Tuesday, launched his 17th career postseason home run in the fourth inning, a move that made Dave Roberts look smart for the decision to play him. Freeman added a solo homer, giving him two in the series despite a regular season finish that did not feature much power.
Now the Dodgers have put themselves in position to bring this thing back to Los Angeles for Game 5 if needed.
For most teams, the star has to shine. For the Dodgers, that hasn’t been the case in October.
They are one win away from advancing to their third straight NLCS with Ohtani still stuck in neutral. He’ll want more from himself, and the Dodgers will want it too, but their early postseason success has already taken some of the pressure off the biggest name in the sport.
Ohtani gets another shot in Game 4 against Tyler Mahle, and the matchup is not a kind one. He is just 1-for-12 in his career against Mahle, with four strikeouts, no walks and no extra-base hits.
Still, as long as the Dodgers keep stacking wins, the slump won’t carry the same weight. And Ohtani knows what he can be in October: last year, he hit eight home runs and posted a 1.096 OPS on the way to the World Series.
He’ll be aiming to clean things up and give Los Angeles the kind of bat it expects as the chase for a three-peat rolls on.
In Other News...
Ronald Acua Jr. Reopened Braves Drama Before A Huge Game 3
Ronald Acua Jr. added a fresh layer of intrigue around the Braves on the eve of Game 3 of the NLDS, using a Spanish-language podcast appearance to share his thoughts on the coaching staff. The comments centered on someone who is no longer with the team, and while Acua and his co-host stopped short of naming the person, the discussion was pointed enough to spark immediate speculation.
For Atlanta, the timing is what makes it stick. With a huge postseason game coming, the remarks have pulled attention back toward a familiar off-field storyline, even though the exact target of Acuas criticism still has not been confirmed. It is the kind of sidelight that can follow a team into October, especially when the baseball itself is about to matter even more. [Read more 🡒]
Braves Had To Change Their NLDS Plan Around Ronald Acua Jr
Ronald Acua Jr. was supposed to be part of the Braves Game 3 NLDS formula in the outfield, but the plan shifted as the series moved on. Lingering knee soreness from a slide in a previous game pushed Atlanta to make a late adjustment, moving Acua to designated hitter and reshaping the rest of the lineup around it.
Sean Murphy was scratched and Lane Thomas was added in right field, while the Braves kept their catching duties aligned behind Chris Sale by leaning on Drake Baldwin. Murphy still remains in the mix as a pinch-hitting option, a reminder that even in October, one nagging issue can force a team to redraw its blueprint on the fly. [Read more 🡒]
Braves-Dodgers Game 3 Just Took Two Unexpected Turns
The NL Division Series shifts to Atlanta with the stakes even again, and the broadcast booth is getting an unusual late change before first pitch. Joe Davis will not call Game 3 between the Dodgers and Braves because he lost his voice, so Kenny Albert is stepping in for the national telecast as the series heads to Tuesdays 6:00 ET matchup.
The on-field wrinkle is just as notable for a Braves team trying to seize control at home. Los Angeles is also altering its order, moving Shohei Ohtani into the fifth spot against Chris Sale, a move that adds another layer to a game already carrying plenty of pressure with the series knotted at 1-1. [Read more 🡒]