LOS ANGELES — The questions have come at Dodgers manager Dave Roberts daily for awhile now. When would Shohei Ohtani make his postseason pitching debut? Would he pitch out of the bullpen or start?
The mystery is over. Roberts confirmed Wednesday night after the Dodgers completed their Wild Card Series sweep of the Cincinnati Reds that Ohtani will start Game 1 of the National League Division Series against the Philadelphia Phillies on the mound.
The Dodgers open the best-of-five series on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. PT in Philadelphia.
“(We) just feel really good about our rotation. I think you could argue whatever order you want,” Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said. “I think they’re all really talented. I know that Sho will revel in being in that environment and pitching in Game 1.”
Roberts had said Ohtani would “probably” start a Game 3 against the Reds if the Wild Card Series went that far. By closing out the series in two games without using Ohtani or Tyler Glasnow in relief, the Dodgers will have three rested starters to choose from in the first games of the NLDS – Ohtani, Glasnow and Clayton Kershaw, who is expected to be added to the roster for that series.
Ohtani has not pitched since Sept. 23 in Arizona, when he held the Diamondbacks scoreless for six innings. He didn’t give up a run in 14⅔ innings over his three starts in September.
In his first season with the Dodgers last year, Ohtani didn’t pitch while recovering from a second elbow surgery performed in September 2023. He became the first player in major league history with at least 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases during the regular season, then injured his left shoulder during the Dodgers’ World Series victory over the New York Yankees.
That shoulder required surgery last November and was also a factor in slowing Ohtani’s return to the mound in 2025.
Ohtani didn’t make his first start until mid-June and then built up slowly with his innings carefully controlled. He wound up making 11 starts and pitching 47 innings. He went past the fourth inning just three times and into a sixth just once in that final regular-season start against the Diamondbacks.
There will be no restraints on how deep Ohtani might pitch in Philadelphia.
“I just think he’s a normal starting pitcher now,” Friedman said. “(We) kind of eased him along. Just a normal starting pitcher (now).”
Offensively, Ohtani finished strong, hitting .312 with 10 home runs and a 1.165 OPS in September. He surpassed his personal-high and franchise-record by one this season with 55 home runs and then hit two in Game 1 against the Reds. He was 1 for 4 with an RBI single in Game 2.