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By Peter Chawaga
Contributing Sports Writer
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The Los Angeles Dodgers dropped their series against the St. Louis Cardinals with a loss on Wednesday, despite a heroic effort from their best player.
Two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani logged his 1,000th major-league hit with a home run in the loss, which also saw him strike out eight batters and exceed 100 mph with his fastball. But as Ohtani continues to dominate in historic fashion, the Dodgers' larger struggles are raising questions about just how far the team can really push him.
The Dodgers have been unwilling to stretch out Ohtani to full starts on the mound so far as they continue to depend on his offensive production with key players like Mookie Betts struggling. The team could be growing even more cautious with the superstar after he suffered some injury setbacks in his previous start.
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"Ohtani exited his most recent start on the mound with right hip cramps, a startling sight amid his rehab from a second elbow ligament reconstruction," Fabian Ardaya wrote for The Athletic. "If he gets hurt, it impacts their lineup even more than it does their rotation."
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Speaking out on the injury concerns swirling around Ohtani as he carries the Dodgers' offense and serves as a key pitcher on a depleted staff, manager Dave Roberts made it seem as if Ohtani's pitching is superfluous and that the team wouldn't risk losing his bat by pushing him on the mound.
"What we're doing right now is essentially house money," Roberts said, per Ardaya. "It's additive, being a two-way player. So then, we got to be mindful of Shohei, now and also going forward."
The Dodgers are likely concerned about injuries for virtually every one of their players, given that additional setbacks seem to be the primary threat to their World Series aspirations at this point. But with Ohtani, those concerns are amplified, given his history and the unprecedented nature of his two-way stardom.
And as those concerns grow, Roberts' latest message seems to indicate that the Dodgers will be protective of Ohtani the hitter, even at the expense of Ohtani the pitcher.
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