Shohei Ohtani Hits Milestone, Dodgers Secure Fourth Straight Win

LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani reached a milestone on Wednesday, completing five innings for the first time since his second ulnar collateral ligament repair. This marked a crucial moment in his recovery as the two-way star helped lead the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 4-1 victory over the Cincinnati Reds.

After throwing 87 pitches, Ohtani rushed to prepare for his next turn at bat without taking a break. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts expressed his excitement, saying, ‘I’m excited for Shohei. You know, he was one hitter away from not getting a chance to get a win because of the pitch count, so I think it was good for him to get that win.’

This season, the Dodgers consider five innings and around 90 pitches as Ohtani’s limit. He called reaching this pitch threshold ‘really key in terms of moving forward.’ Ohtani relied heavily on his breaking pitches, limiting the Reds to one run, which came from a solo homer by Ketel Marte, while striking out a season-high nine batters.

Earlier in the season, Ohtani faced struggles, allowing a combined nine runs over back-to-back starts. But on Wednesday, he effectively mixed his pitches, throwing 17 curveballs, a pitch he had avoided until recently. ‘We’d had a plan of kind of living away from the fastball as much as we had in the past couple starts,’ said Dodgers catcher Will Smith.

Ohtani’s strategy paid off as he threw seven different pitches in the first inning. Despite difficulties with walks and wild pitches in the second inning, he struck out the side to emerge unscathed. After Marte’s home run, Ohtani retired eight consecutive batters, demonstrating impressive command.

In the bottom of the fourth, Ohtani’s performance at the plate also contributed to the team’s score as he hit a line drive single, setting up a steady rally. This victory was the Dodgers’ fourth in a row, and they took a two-game lead in the National League West.

The Dodgers are optimistic about their rotation and bullpen, which are starting to improve. ‘Just looking at our roster, I really like where we’re at in terms of our starting pitchers and bullpen,’ Ohtani said through an interpreter. ‘I just want to make sure that I do my part as a starting pitcher to go deeper into games and help out the bullpen.’