Dodgers' Dave Roberts Credits Shohei Ohtani For Making Adjustments At The Plate

Maren Angus-Coombs | Jun 22, 2024

Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani hit a baseball on Friday night at Dodger Stadium where very few players have hit one before finding the back of a climbing tarp in center field near the upper section of seats in the Right Field Pavilion.

It was his National League-leading 22nd home run of the season.

Ohtani reached base all four times he came up — two walks, the homer, and a single. The Dodgers collectively reached base seven times in a 3-2 extra-inning loss to the Los Angeles Angels.

Shohei Ohtani is the most respectful superstar in the league.

He greeted his old teammates and bowed to the Angels dugout before hitting a 455 ft home run to welcome them to his new home 🤩 pic.twitter.com/O1Spqf9Lzl

— Dodgers Nation (@DodgersNation) June 22, 2024

Since the injury to Mookie Betts, Ohtani has flawlessly moved into the lead-off spot in the lineup and produced ridiculous numbers. In the five games without Betts, Ohtani is 10-for-20 with five walks and two strikeouts. In his last six games, he has hit five home runs, driven in a run, and scored a run.

“It’s certainly the hottest I think we’ve seen him,” said manager Dave Roberts.

Roberts credits the adjustments Ohtani has made at the plate to his success in June. Outside of a four-game stretch from June 2-6, where he struck out nine times in 20 plate appearances, he has elevated his game. Since then, he has only struck out six times in 64 plate appearances. He has put 18 balls in play with 11 being extra-base hits and seven leaving the yard.

“I think he just took a step back and understood what they were trying to do and when he’s really good, and so he sort of reset himself and really made a point to control the zone,” Roberts said.