Shohei Ohtani’s second start on the mound for the Los Angeles Dodgers offered a glimpse of what the team — and all of baseball — has been waiting for. The two-way superstar delivered a scoreless first inning in Sunday’s 13–7 win over the Nationals, then came up clutch with a go-ahead triple and a two-run homer late in the game, reasserting his status as the sport’s most electrifying talent.
Command and Confidence Return on the Mound
Ohtani, making just his second pitching appearance since UCL surgery in 2023, threw 18 pitches in a clean first inning, notching his first two strikeouts in a Dodgers uniform. His fastball averaged 97.9 mph and peaked at 98.8, showing much better command and rhythm than his debut earlier in the week.
“Overall, I was able to relax much better compared to my last outing,” Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton. “It’s going to be a gradual process. I want to see improvements with the quality of the pitches that I’m throwing, and then also increasing the amount of pitches.”
He worked around a dropped popup by Mookie Betts and a wild pitch, using his sweeper and cutter effectively to retire Luis García Jr. and Nathaniel Lowe on swinging strikes.
It is in contrast to his first outing;
“It’s interesting, as famous as he is, Ohtani said that he was more nervous than at any point as a position player when he made that first outing last Monday against San Diego,” ESPN’s Buster Olney reported during Sunday’s SportsCenter.
Shohei Ohtani’s Bat Remains MVP-Caliber
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After striking out in his first at-bat — with barely two minutes separating him from his time on the mound — Ohtani bounced back with a bases-clearing triple in the seventh and his league-leading 26th home run in the eighth.
“He’s just unflappable,” manager Dave Roberts said. “From the mound to the on-deck circle to the batter’s box — it’s incredible to witness.”
Ohtani is still building up his stamina as a pitcher, but the Dodgers are managing his workload carefully. If this trajectory continues, fans may soon witness the full return of baseball’s most unique and dominant force.