Dodgers move Shohei Ohtani back to leadoff while facing NLCS elimination vs. Brewers

The Los Angeles Dodgers have batted Shohei Ohtani second, fourth, fifth and sixth in their lineup across seven games this postseason. Now down 3-0 in the NLCS, they have one more idea for him.

Ohtani is batting leadoff in the Dodgers’ batting order for Game 4 against the Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday, in which the club is attempting to begin a comeback from down 3-0 in the series.

Mookie Betts will move back to second, where he spent much of the regular season, with Freddie Freeman third and Will Smith in the clean-up spot.

Ohtani was the Dodgers’ everyday leadoff hitter from June 2024 until September of this year. Due to struggles related to knee, biceps and neck issues, the Dodgers placed him on the injured list then tentatively put him in a leadoff platoon with Betts when he returned for the final five games of the season.

However, Ohtani has struggled mightily since coming back from the IL, resulting in him moving further back in the batting order until he was hitting sixth in Game 3 on Wednesday, his lowest placement since before his first MVP year in 2021.

Ohtani, who has been adament about continuing to play, did have a decent game on Wednesday, going 1-for-2 with a single, walk and hit-by-pitch. That was apparently enough to convince the Dodgers to give leadoff a try again.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts’ pregame explanation:

“Just seeing the work the last couple days, I like where his head is at. I like that at-bats yesterday and I felt that trying to shake it up a bit — obviously, we haven’t performed the way that we’re capable of. Something that’s of somewhat normalcy that our guys are used to.”

Ohtani still hasn’t hit a home run since Aug. 18, but getting on base three out of four times at least bodes well for a more traditional leadoff man.

Ohtani’s placement is ultimately a small button to press, but the Dodgers are at the point where they will try anything. Their offense, one of the best in baseball during the regular season, has gone dormant in the NLCS, if it already wasn’t there in the NLDS against the Atlanta Braves.

The Dodgers hitters are now 3-for-32 with runners in scoring position, with zero home runs this series. You can ascribe that to basic bad luck, a lack of execution from a veteran-heavy group, a clutch performance by the Brewers (and Braves) pitchers or some sort of Space Jam-esque talent robbery, but it all adds up to a unit that needs a change.

Game 4 is scheduled for Thursday at 5 p.m. PT at Dodger Stadium (Fox Sports 1).