
Shohei Ohtani is up first in the NLDS.
Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts confirmed that Ohtani will start in Game 1 of the NLDS on Saturday against the Philadelphia Phillies. The announcement came shortly after the Dodgers closed out the Cincinnati Reds 8-4 in Game 2 of their wild-card series on Wednesday night, which sent the Dodgers into the divisional round of the playoffs for a 13th straight season.
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Once Ohtani takes the mound at Citizens Bank Park on Saturday, he’ll make Major League Baseball history by becoming the first player to start at least one game as a pitcher and one as a non-pitcher in a single postseason, according to MLB.com’s Sarah Langs.
It will also mark Ohtani’s MLB postseason pitching debut. He did not pitch at all last season with the Dodgers while recovering from surgery, and Ohtani did not make the postseason in his six seasons with the Los Angeles Angels.
The Dodgers did not need Ohtani on the mound in their first two games this postseason. Yoshinobu Yamamoto had nine strikeouts in more than six innings in his start on Wednesday. Blake Snell started in their 10-5 win over the Reds in Game 1 on Tuesday.
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Ohtani has slowly worked his way back into pitching this season after a second surgery following the team’s World Series win last year. He made his debut against the San Diego Padres on June 16, though he only pitched one inning that night. He’s slowly increased his time on the mound as he’s gone, and he pitched six full innings in the team’s 5-4 loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks on Sept. 23. He hasn’t pitched since.
Ohtani currently holds a 2.87 ERA with 62 strikeouts in 47 innings this season. He’s been almost as dominant as the team’s designated hitter as he was last season, when he won NL MVP honors, too. Ohtani recorded 55 home runs, the third-most throughout the league, and 102 RBIs this season.
The Phillies went 96-66 this season and won the NL East. They trailed only the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL, which gave them a bye out of the wild-card round. The Dodgers are the first wild-card team to clinch a divisional series spot. There will be three Game 3s on Thursday across the league to wrap up the opening round before the next round starts on Saturday.
This news was originally published on this post .
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