What the Phillies learned about Shohei Ohtani and the Dodgers, and how it could help in the playoffs
The Phillies view Ohtani’s five shutout innings his first outing against them as a learning experience. “That’s big for us, to be able to get eyes on him,” said Kyle Schwarber.
LOS ANGELES — No matter how well Shohei Ohtani pitched against the Phillies on Tuesday, there was no chance he was going to be walking out to the mound for the sixth inning.
As it happened, the only blemish in his five innings was a walk to Bryce Harper, as Ohtani held the Phillies without a single hit. But the Dodgers, fiercely protective of their biggest star, did not waver for a moment from their plan, even with a first-round bye at stake in the series.
And despite Ohtani helping his own cause with his 50th home run of the season, the Dodgers bullpen lost the game.
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The Phillies secured their fifth consecutive series win against Los Angeles by pouncing on Dodgers relievers. It was the Phils’ only path to victory, because they could not produce against any of their starters. Against Emmet Sheehan (a starter who followed opener Anthony Banda on Monday), Ohtani, and lefty Blake Snell, the Phillies hit .054.
All but one of the 15 runs the Phillies scored this week against the Dodgers were against the bullpen. (And that one run charged to Sheehan on Monday scored after Jack Dreyer inherited a runner on second.)
But they can’t bank on coming through against the bullpen every time, as the Phillies saw when Snell twirled seven scoreless on Wednesday and Alex Vesia and Tanner Scott closed the door. Ohtani may be on an innings limit now in his first season back pitching after elbow surgery, but all bets are off when the playoffs roll around.
And with the Phillies closing in on the first-round bye, it’s possible they will see the reigning World Series champions again at some point in October.
“Two really good clubs, and we’ve played well against them,” said manager Rob Thomson. “So that’s a good sign. Whether we match up well or not, that’s to be seen. But I think we’ve played well against them, and we’ve played well here, too.”
Wednesday’s struggles against left-hander Snell do come with the caveat that the Phillies were without three of their go-to right-handed bats. Against lefties, Trea Turner leads the team with a .323 batting average. Alec Bohm is hitting .274, and Edmundo Sosa has a .314 batting average and .865 OPS.
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So, maybe it would have been a different tale if that trio wasn’t on the injured list. The Phillies expect to have Bohm (shoulder inflammation) back by Friday, Sosa (groin strain) back by next week, and Turner (hamstring strain) back by the postseason.
It’s likely, then, that if the Phillies and Dodgers do meet again next month, at least a third of the batting order will be different if Snell is on the mound. But even for the hitters who scuffled the first time, each at-bat is a learning experience that could help them in their next meeting.
That’s exactly how the Phillies are viewing those five innings on Tuesday against Ohtani, which was the first time the Dodgers superstar has faced them on the mound. A 101.7 mph four-seamer he threw to Kyle Schwarber in the first inning matched the fastest pitch of his career. And that was just one weapon in Ohtani’s seven-pitch arsenal.
“I think that’s big for us, to be able to get eyes on him, see the way that the ball comes out, the way that different pitches move, things like that,” Schwarber said. “Familiarity is always a nice time to have whenever you’re facing someone. ... Moving forward, if we do see him, then I feel like you can have somewhat of a better understanding of what the ball’s going to do.”
Brandon Marsh spent the early part of his career as Ohtani’s teammate on the Angels, but this was the first time he has faced him in a game. He also saw it as a learning experience.
“I’m a believer of the more you see a guy, the more comfortable you get, even when he has ‘X’ amount of pitches that he has, plus-plus pitches,” Marsh said. “So I’m glad we saw him tonight, so down the road, we have a better understanding and feeling for him.”
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On the flip side, two of the Phillies’ top left-handed bullpen arms, Matt Strahm and Tanner Banks, avoided seeing Ohtani at all during this series.
Thomson said Wednesday that this wasn’t by design, it just happened to work out that way. But just as the Phillies were glad to leave Los Angeles with some at-bats against Ohtani under their belts ahead of a potential postseason meeting, they probably weren’t unhappy to limit Ohtani’s looks against their own lefty relievers.
One thing is for certain: If the Phillies find themselves back in Los Angeles next month, they are in for a battle. But it’s a battle they’ve proven they can win. Even while hitting .054 against the Dodgers’ starters.
“I think we match up well,” said Jesús Luzardo, “but I’ll take the guys in this clubhouse any day a week against anyone.”