Shohei Ohtani: Elite on the mound, but struggling at the plate

This season, Shohei Ohtani has been pitching on a regular basis.

With 37 innings under his belt in six starts, he isn't the pitcher with the most innings pitched. He's already far behind Max Fried's 58.2 innings pitched, for example.

But when he pitches, Ohtani gets the job done. He has allowed just four earned runs, and his ERA is under 1.00—it stands at 0.97.

He's getting plenty of rest (he hasn't pitched since May 5 and isn't expected back until May 13) to keep him in top form… and the current approach is working for the pitcher.

His 1.5 WAR on the mound is incredible.

His chances of winning the Cy Young are slim right now, but that's because of the number of innings. Because every time he takes the mound, things go pretty well for him.

But at the plate, things aren't all rosy for Ohtani. He has just four hits in his last 33 plate appearances and a single home run in 102 plate appearances. He has six home runs and 16 RBIs this season as the quarter-mark approaches.

That's not enough for a player recognized as the face of Major League Baseball. And that's even though the guy is also entitled to his off days.

#Dodgers Shohei Ohtani has gone 0 for 4 today. Has just 4 hits in his past 33 at-bats and only 1 HR in his past 102 plate appearances

— Bill Plunkett (@billplunkettocr) May 10, 2026

The Dodgers' offense (which will benefit from Mookie Betts' return, which certainly won't hurt) needs to step up on certain nights. And that starts with Ohtani, of course.

Knowing him, he'll bounce back quickly. Even if it's tough to both hit and pitch.

It appears that the workload required of Shohei Ohtani to start is beginning to take a toll on his offensive production.

“Talk to any pitcher and ask how sore they are the next day after they pitch.” pic.twitter.com/ZRKZG9VLQZ

— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) May 11, 2026

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