National League Division Series G2: The Dodgers lost to the Warriors, Robles pointed out the problem of Shohei Ohtani chasing bad balls

Shohei Ohtani. (Reuters)

In the best-of-five National League Division Series G2, the Dodgers lost to the Warriors 2-3 today. Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani had 1 hit but also struck out 2 times. Dodgers head coach Dave Roberts pointed out that Ohtani chased too many bad balls.

Ohtani Shohei served as the second designated hitter. He struck out in the first at bat. In the third inning, he hit an infield fly ball with one out and first and second base were occupied. He hit a single in the third at bat and struck out again in the fourth at bat.

In total, "Shohei the Hitter" had a total of 8 at-bats and 2 hits in 2 games in the playoffs, all of which were short-range hits. His batting average was 0.250. Including the regular season, Shohei Ohtani went 94 consecutive games without a hit.

Regarding the situation of Shohei Ohtani, Robles pointed out, "If you look at his playing field, I think he has a lot of situations where he chases bad balls. It is difficult to really hit the ball outside the strike zone and make a good swing. That is probably the core of the problem."

In Game 3 of the series, the Dodgers will face the Warriors' Cy Young left-hander Chris Sale. The 37-year-old veteran had a 9-inning 11K shutout victory against the Dodgers on August 27, US time. At that time, Ohtani Shohei had 4 hits, 0 hits, and 2 strikeouts. Robles pointed out that facing Sale will be a tough battle, "We will try to get him (Ohtani) back in control of the strike zone."

Talking about Ohtani Shohei's physical condition, Robles said that he heard that there was no problem. "I don't know if it is because his physical condition is not 100%, so he tried to do something too hard...At this time, no player is in 100% perfect condition. He is doing his best."