After spending all of 2024 and the first half of the 2025 MLB season as a hitter only – albeit one good enough to win an MVP award – Shohei Ohtani pitching for the Los Angeles Dodgers has become increasingly commonplace so far this summer, with the two-way unicorn posting a 2.37 ERA over his eight starts so far this season.
And yet, while Ohtani is pitching like one of the truly elite arms in baseball while competing for the home run crown once more, how often he will pitch and how deep he will go into each outing has become a weekly question for skipper Dave Roberts, even now that he's more or less gotten his full arsenal of arms back at his disposal.
Discussing if Ohtani would pitch against his former team, the Los Angeles Angels, when the Dodgers take the hour drive down I-5 to Anaheim, Roberts broke down his plans and how his star pitcher feels about a return to the home of Disneyland.
“Dodgers Shohei Ohtani will make his next pitching start on Wednesday as expected, backed up to an off day on Thursday,” Plunkett wrote. “That means he will face the Angels for the 1st time pitching. Could it be emotional? “Not really,' Dave Roberts said. ‘Shohei – he doesn't show a lot of emotion.'”
While this game won't be Ohtani's first against the Angels, as he's actually faced them seven times since switching sides in The Freeway Series, it will mark his pitching debut against his former team, which could present a unique challenge against Mike Trout and company.
Will the Angels be able to use this inside knowledge to punish one of the best pitchers in the business? Or will Ohtani use the showdown as fuel to throw a gem? Either way, Roberts is right about one thing: Ohtani isn't one to wear his heart on his sleeve, so fans likely won't know how he's feeling either way.
