The Los Angeles Dodgers are facing elimination in the National League Championship Series, and they will do so with their superstar in the lineup, but the decision comes with a level of uncertainty that has cast a shadow over the entire franchise. Manager Dave Roberts confirmed Tuesday that Shohei Ohtani will play in Game 3 against the Milwaukee Brewers, but the manager’s own description of the slugger’s physical condition has raised more questions than it has answered.
The Dodgers are in a 0 – 2 hole after dropping the first two games of the series in Milwaukee, and the pressure to win Game 3 at home is immense. Ohtani’s presence in the lineup is a necessary boost for a team that has struggled to generate offense, yet the manner in which Roberts explained the decision suggests this is not a simple case of a star returning to form. The manager’s candid assessment of Ohtani’s body has left fans and analysts wondering just how compromised the two-way phenom actually is.
Roberts revealed that Ohtani will bat anywhere from second to sixth in the order, a wide range that indicates the coaching staff is unsure of what they will get from him. This flexibility is a stark departure from the days when Ohtani was an automatic fixture at the top of the lineup, a player who could single handedly change the course of a game with one swing. Now, the team is seemingly preparing for the possibility that he might not be the same player who dominated the league for years.
The concern is rooted in a specific at-bat during Monday’s Game 2 loss, a 7-4 defeat that saw Ohtani go 0-for 4 with two strikeouts. In the sixth inning, Ohtani flashed a bunt before flailing at a sweeper well outside the strike zone, losing his bat in the process. The at-bat was a microcosm of his entire postseason, a series of uncompetitive swings that have drawn criticism from fans and analysts alike.
The question is no longer whether Ohtani is slumping, but whether he is physically capable of playing at a major league level right now.
The injuries that have plagued Ohtani are not new, but their severity has been shrouded in secrecy. He spent 12 days on the injured list in September with issues in his left knee and right biceps, problems that have reduced him to a one-way player this season. The Dodgers and Ohtani have both kept the extent of the damage vague, offering only generalities about pain and discomfort.
This lack of transparency has fueled speculation that the situation is far worse than anyone is letting on.
Roberts’ own words have done little to quell the unease. In describing Ohtani’s condition, the manager offered a sentence that has become the focal point of the entire narrative. “The upper body.
The knee. He’s just not perfect. Everything,” Roberts said.
It is a phrase that does not name a specific injury, does not offer a timeline, and does not provide any clarity. It simply acknowledges that something is wrong, all over, and yet the manager is still writing Ohtani’s name on the lineup card.
The decision to play Ohtani appears to have been driven largely by the player himself. According to Roberts, Ohtani was “convicted and adamant” that he is close to breaking out of his slump and wanted to be in the lineup for Game 3. The manager leaned into that conviction, stating that in this big moment, the team is listening to Ohtani and will support him and believe in him.
It is a show of faith in a player who has earned it over a career defined by extraordinary achievement, but it is also a gamble.
Roberts has built in a safety valve, telling Ohtani that if he does not feel good enough to perform up to his ability, the team will pivot and give him a couple of days. It is not a blank check, but rather a trust-based agreement that relies on Ohtani’s ability to self-assess in the heat of a playoff battle. The question is whether a competitor of Ohtani’s caliber will actually raise his hand and admit he cannot go, especially with the season on the line.
The numbers paint a grim picture. Since returning from the injured list, Ohtani is a combined 8-for-41, including the postseason, with just one double and 15 strikeouts. In the playoffs, he is 3-for-20 with three walks and seven strikeouts, all three hits being singles.
He has zero RBIs in six postseason games, and his home run drought dates back to August 18. For a hitter whose entire career has been about changing games with one swing, these numbers are almost unrecognizable.
The contrast with last year’s postseason is stark. Ohtani hit eight home runs in 84 plate appearances and posted an on-base percentage of . 405.
He was a player at the absolute peak of his powers, a force of nature who could carry a team on his back. Now, the question is whether he can even make solid contact. The gap between that version of Ohtani and the one currently struggling is so vast that it is impossible to believe the problem is only a cold streak.
Roberts has acknowledged that the left knee and right arm issues, the same ones that kept Ohtani from pitching beyond early July, have eventually crept into his offense. A knee problem can affect a hitter’s base and rotation, while an arm problem can affect bat speed and timing. Put those together and it is easy to see how a swing could fall apart without a dramatic single injury moment.
Ohtani himself has admitted he has not been able to get a good grasp of the root cause of all this.
The best player in baseball does not fully know why his body and swing are not cooperating. That is not a criticism, but it does help explain why the Dodgers cannot give a clean, simple injury report. Ohtani has talked about different approaches, such as reducing the symptoms and getting rid of the pain and making sure he is moving well in the swing.
He is trying to solve this on two tracks at once, managing the pain and fixing the movement, a lot to ask on a Wednesday night in a championship series.
The Brewers are starting left-hander Robert Gasser in Game 3, a matchup that is not ideal for the left-handed hitting Ohtani. This could be part of why Roberts is leaving himself flexibility in the batting order. The Dodgers have already tried to protect Ohtani by moving him down in the lineup, and now they might drop him even further.
They believe in the bat, but they do not trust the results enough to put him at the top anymore.
By running Ohtani out there every night, the Dodgers are betting that a breakthrough is coming. The fear of pulling the plug before Ohtani breaks out seems bigger than the worry about continuing to play him. If you bench him and he would have hit a game-changing home run, you will never forgive yourself.
If you play him and he goes 0-for-4 again, you have at least gone down with your best player. But there is an honest counterargument that the Dodgers are down 0-2 and every plate appearance is precious.
If Ohtani is playing hurt and cannot do damage, a healthier bat on the bench might be more valuable right now. That is the case people are making on sports radio and social media, and it is not unreasonable. The decision to play Ohtani tonight is a gamble, but it is one that most managers would make with a player of his caliber.
The key will be watching his first swing, not the result, to see if he looks balanced or if he is guiding the bat.
A bad knee shows up on routine ground balls and on the bases, not just in the batter’s box. If Roberts and the training staff are huddling around him mid-game, that is a signal. The plan is flexible, so a quiet change can happen without any announcement.
Whatever you think of the decision, this is a legitimately fascinating moment for baseball. You have the biggest star in the sport visibly playing through something with a manager who cannot or will not give you a precise diagnosis and a team on the brink.
If Ohtani turns this around tonight, it becomes one of the great October comeback stories. If he does not, the questions about his health are going to get louder fast. Ohtani has a history of answering doubt with a swing, and that is exactly why Roberts is sticking with him.
The Dodgers are down 0-2, the injuries involve his knee, his upper body, and a right arm issue that has already ended his pitching season, and nobody has given a clear public breakdown of it. Roberts is trusting Ohtani’s word, the numbers say the risk is real, and the safety valve is there if the body says no. Now, it is time to see if the greatest talent in the game can summon one more moment of brilliance.
