"Had the Dodgers not swept the Reds, it's presumed Ohtani was going to start in a winner-take-all Game 3 at Dodger Stadium. Though, the team never fully committed to as much. "If there's a Game 3 he'll probably start Game 3," manager Dave Roberts said of Ohtani earlier this week. There had been some indications Ohtani would potentially start Game 1 against the Reds as his schedule had been pitching on a Tuesday since Sept. 16."
""I think that the workload, it's the proper rest for Snell, Yamamoto. And obviously we don't know what's going to happen with a Game 3," Roberts explained. "But also there's an off day after that. So just thinking through everything." It's difficult to argue the Dodgers' reasoning, as Blake Snell collected nine strikeouts over seven strong innings in Game 1. Ohtani also hit two home runs in what was shaping up to be a convincing win until the Dodgers bullpen struggled."
The Los Angeles Dodgers swept the Cincinnati Reds in the NL Wild Card Series and will open the NLDS against the Philadelphia Phillies. Shohei Ohtani was named the Dodgers' Game 1 starting pitcher at Citizens Bank Park. The Phillies will start Cristopher Sánchez in the NLDS opener. The Dodgers managed Ohtani's workload during the Wild Card Series, initially using him as designated hitter and preserving rest for Blake Snell and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Ohtani finished the regular season 1-1 with a 2.87 ERA and 1.04 WHIP across 14 starts, with a season-high six innings in his final outing.
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