Down 2-0, The Dodgers Are Reportedly Flirting With The Idea Of Doing The Unthinkable....Benching The Slumping Shohei Ohtani
It's getting uncomfortable in Los Angeles, folks. The Brewers have looked like and been the MUCH better team through two games in the NLCS and a lot of that has to do with the nasty slump that Dodgers slugger Shohei Ohtani is going through. Struck out twice last night and is now 1-7 in the NLCS and when you look at the full 2026 postseason he's 3-20 with all of those hits being singles. A slash line of .150/.261/150, a .411 OPS with 7 Ks and only 3 walks. He's not hitting, he's not getting on base, and he's striking out a decent amount. Basically a non-factor in every single game at-bat since mid-August.
He dealt with some injuries down the stretch and spent some time on the IL so theres obviously an injury factor here but I think it's safe to say for the good of the team the Dodgers have to make some tough decisions and quick. Do they take Ohtani out of the lineup in the best interest of the team as they try to keep their season alive? Ken Rosenthal and Katie Woo wrote in The Athletic after last night's loss that it's something Dave Roberts and the Dodgers are discussing.
You see the numbers he's put up and you almost think they have to, he's been that bad. Easily the worst slump of his career. His last home run was on August 18th, almost two months ago. Since then he's got a whopping 36 strikeouts and has driven in one single run. It's not just a tough couple weeks, it's a legit slump for the former billion time MVP. Did you ever think we'd get to a point where the Dodgers would have to potentially bench this guy because he's hurting the team? I mean 3 months ago you'd have had someone drug tested if they suggested this could be a thing that happens in the near future. But going home down 0-2, Dave Roberts and company have to at least entertain it.
Now would it shock anyone if he started game 3 and went 3/5 with a homer and two doubles? Not at all, but the way he's been looking at the plate it seems like a hell of a long shot. This is where the Dodgers' depth comes into play, they can bench the likely injured Ohtani and just plug Josue De Paula right into the DH spot. Just another prized rookie stud the Dodgers can slide right into place. Do they have the balls to do it? That remains unseen. He's played a lot of baseball and seemed pretty banged up during the season, we didn't see that typical Ohtani like year. Maybe he's just completely worn down and is finally breaking down or maybe it's just an elongated slump. Whatever it is, it's bad news for the Dodgers as they look to execute this three peat.
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They've got to figure this out ASAP, they're hanging on by a thread, look totally outmanned and outclassed by the Brewers and have to see if they can get this thing back on the tracks. If not they'll be packing up their stuff and heading home before the weekend. Ohtani is obviously the key to this Dodgers lineup, they've skated by so far without him but this Brewers team looks too good, Shohei has to play like the Shohei we know if they're going to mount this comeback. It's not like you have time to give him a series or a weekend off and let him regroup and figure things out in the cage, this is a red alert and they're taking on water quick.
No one is feeling sorry for Ohtani or the Dodgers, they're public enemy #1 when it comes to October baseball. The people love this, they want to see the downfall of this guy and his team. I think Ohtani is the most electrifying man in baseball and think the sport is at it's best when he is healthy and putting up historical numbers. I also think it's fascinating to see that he IS human, he does have these prolonged slumps and can be a negative to his team when they need him the most. Just a super interesting pickle that the Dodgers are in, they can't actually bench this guy…can they? Does Dave Roberts have the balls to sit the $700 million man on the bench in what could be his team's final games? Guess we'll find out.