LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani took another significant step toward his full capability on the mound while he threw one hitless inning.
And at the plate, the Dodgers’ two-way superstar was once again at the peak of his powers.
Ohtani recorded two strikeouts in his second mound start for Los Angeles, allowing just one baserunner on an error. The three-time MVP then drove in five runs at the plate, hitting a three-run triple in the seventh before adding his NL-leading 26th homer in the eighth inning of the Dodgers’ 13-7 victory over the Washington Nationals.
Ohtani is proceeding deliberately on his way back to longer weekly mound appearances, but the three-time MVP is encouraged by what he’s been able to do in two short starts.
“I do feel like I have to work on some things,” Ohtani said through his interpreter. “But at the same time, I do feel like I can perform better, even better than I used to be able to perform at.”
Ohtani threw 18 pitches against Washington, recording 12 strikes with one wild pitch. After leadoff hitter CJ Abrams grounded out, Mookie Betts dropped James Wood’s popup in the sun, but Ohtani struck out Luis García Jr. and Nathaniel Lowe to end it.
Ohtani’s fastball topped out at 98.8 mph after hitting 100 in his first outing, and he finished both of his strikeouts with breaking balls.
“He was considerably better today, as far as the stuff, the life of the fastball, the command of his pitches,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “Much better, so overall a really good outing.”
Roberts was referring to improvement since Ohtani’s Dodgers mound debut, when he allowed two hits and a run while throwing 28 pitches in an inning against San Diego in his first pitching appearance since 2023 with the Angels.
“It’s going to be a gradual process,” Ohtani said. “I want to see improvements with the quality of the pitches that I’m throwing, and then also increasing the amount of pitches, so it’s going to be gradual.”
Roberts and Ohtani both said the Dodgers don’t have a firm timeline to expand Ohtani’s starts to full length, but he feels increasingly confident in his ability to go longer. Roberts said the Dodgers’ pregame plan was to use Ohtani for just one inning against Washington, and Betts’ error erased the small possibility of sending Ohtani back out for the second.
“Overall, I was able to relax much better compared to my last start,” Ohtani said….