Toronto (Canada) (AFP) – Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts believes a fully-fit Shohei Ohtani is poised for a “big” World Series as the reigning MLB champions prepare to face the Toronto Blue Jays in game one on Friday. Japanese two-way superstar Ohtani powered the Dodgers into the World Series last week with a jaw-dropping solo masterpiece, blasting three home runs and recording 10 strikeouts in a 5-1 defeat of the Milwaukee Brewers.
Roberts believes that performance augurs well for Ohtani, who made a modest contribution to last year’s 4-1 World Series victory over the New York Yankees after suffering a shoulder injury in game two. Although Ohtani played in all five games against the Yankees, he mustered just two hits from 19 at bats and never looked completely comfortable following his injury. But Roberts believes Ohtani’s performance against the Brewers — acclaimed by many as the greatest individual display in baseball history — could be a catalyst for World Series success.
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“Having him healthy going in is a great thing,” Roberts said on Thursday. “I think him kind of feeding off that last game is a good thing. Last year, it was just more of just being able to stand in the batter’s box and do whatever he could to sort of help us, whereas I think this year he’s equipped to have a big series. And he’s just going to have to be smart and disciplined because they’re going to pitch him careful, and he’s just got to be smart, and if he’s disciplined, then it should bode well for him and for all of us.”
Ohtani, meanwhile, told reporters on Thursday he is anticipating some nerves when he takes the field at the Rogers Centre on Friday. “I expect myself to be nervous, especially when I start, but that is to be expected,” he said through an interpreter. “They’re really a complete team, both on the hitting side and pitching side, so I expect a pretty good fight. We played a lot of really good teams coming up to this World Series. But most importantly, I’m really confident with this current Dodgers team. We’ve bonded really strongly with each other, and so I’m hoping that will be expressed on the field.”
In a parallel universe, Ohtani might have been lining up for Toronto rather than the Dodgers. The 31-year-old was courted aggressively by the Blue Jays when a free agent in 2023 before eventually opting to join the Dodgers. Blue Jays manager John Schneider jokingly referenced his meeting with Ohtani two years ago when addressing the media on Thursday. “I hope he brought the Blue Jays hat that he took from us in our meeting,” Schneider said, also requesting Ohtani return a Blue Jays-themed jacket the team had given him for his dog, Decoy. “You know, like give us our stuff back already,” Schneider said. “But he’s a great player…I think things worked out the way they’re meant to work out.”
Dodgers teammate Freddie Freeman, last season’s World Series MVP, doubts that Ohtani’s unicorn-like combination of elite pitching and hitting may ever be seen again in Major League Baseball. “I don’t know if you’re ever going to see another person be able to do it,” Freeman said. “Most people don’t see what he’s doing in between and underneath. It’s just so hard to do. He’s two different people. I don’t know if there are words to describe Shohei and what he does in between starts. I always marveled at the fact that he was rehabbing Tommy John surgery last year and went 50/50,” Freeman added, referring to Ohtani’s historic 2024 regular season, which saw him become the first player to score 50 home runs and record 50 stolen bases in the same year. “And now this year I’m seeing him pitch and hit 50 more home runs.”
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