Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani is having a phenomenal year at the plate and is looking more like the 2025 National League MVP by the day.
In addition to his quest for a third consecutive MVP honor (and fourth overall), Ohtani is still in the process of fully ramping up as a pitcher as well, tossing 27.1 innings so far to the tune of a 4.61 ERA.
Dodgers pitching coach Mark Prior spoke to sportscasting legend Dan Patrick about the idea of having Ohtani pitch out of the bullpen at some point in October.
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“It’s been discussed,” said Prior. “It’s really understanding the rules of him coming in as a reliever and knowing that because of the rule and the way it’s set up right now as a starter, he can come out of the game and still maintain as a DH. But he comes in as a reliever, you got to find that line of where the game is because you can’t have him come in in the sixth and then take him out as a pitcher in the seventh and then keep him as a DH.
“It would have to be a situation where we think the game is over and he’s closing, or be okay with him not hitting anymore. That would be really the only scenario. Can I see it? Absolutely. But it would probably be closer to the back end when the game’s kind of on the line and it would be over after he’s done.”
As Prior stated, Ohtani wouldn’t be able to start the game as a DH, enter and exit as a relief pitcher, and then continue batting.
Thus, the team could only utilize him in relief if he was essentially getting the final outs of a game.
With all the accolades that Ohtani has collected throughout a career that will almost definitely end in Cooperstown, the prospect of a postseason save being added to his long resume would be a once-in-a-lifetime achievement, and something Dodgers fans would remember forever.
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Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
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