After the Los Angeles Dodgers announced their starters for Games 1 and 2 of the NLCS against the Milwaukee Brewers, many around the baseball world were wondering why superstar Shohei Ohtani wasn’t given the nod for either of the games.
With Blake Snell pitching Game 1 on Monday and Yoshinobu Yamamoto slated for Game 2, there are also questions as to when right-hander Tyler Glasnow will start an NLCS game as well.
According to manager Dave Roberts, he has already determined when Glasnow and Ohtani will pitch during this series, but declined to announce it ahead of Monday’s start to the series.
The last time Glasnow started this postseason was during Game 4 of the NLDS, an eventual closeout game that catapulted the Dodgers to the next round. He struck out eight and allowed just two hits across six scoreless innings.
During Game 1 of the NLDS, Glasnow came out of the bullpen, tossing 1.2 scoreless frames on the way to LA taking the, 5-3 win.
Ohtani has had less success this postseason, but still had a solid start on the way to a Game 2 NLDS win. The three-time MVP allowed three earned runs in the second inning, but struck out nine and allowed just one walk across six innings.
Offensively, Ohtani has been struggling this October going 1-for-18 during the NLDS with an RBI. Roberts assured the media that Ohtani not starting in Milwaukee had nothing to do with his struggles in the batter’s box.
“No, not at all. I think it was just kind of Shohei’s going to pitch one game this series. So it’s one game and then you have two other guys that potentially can pitch on regular rest. So how do you get sort of your best pitchers the most innings in a potential seven-game series.
“So I expect a different output from Shohei on the offensive side this series,” Roberts said. “But, yeah, pushing him back was no bearing on the offensive performance.”
More news: Dodgers Lineup for NLCS Game 1 vs Brewers: Kiké Hernandez In, Will Smith Starting
Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Have you downloaded the new Dodgers Nation app yet? Click here for Apple Users and here for Android Users to be a part of the redesigned app to give fans everything they need, all in one place. Don’t miss out on live GameCast with play-by-play, news and analysis, Dodgers Nation podcasts and videos, all the stats you want and more!
