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Dodgers Announce Shohei Ohtani as Game 1 NLDS Starter at Citizens Bank Park
By Luke Arcaini
Published:
The Dodgers advanced to the NLDS on Wednesday night, beating the Cincinnati Reds 8-4 and sweeping the NL Wild Card Series at Dodger Stadium.
LA will now come to Citizens Bank Park for the 5-game National League Division Series, which begins at either 6:08 p.m. or 6:38 p.m., depending on the result of the Yankees/Red Sox series.
After Wednesday night’s game, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts confirmed that it’ll be Shohei Ohtani on the mound in Game 1 vs. Cristopher Sanchez:
Ohtani has only pitched against the Phillies one time, and it was in the late-September series out at Dodger Stadium after the Phillies clinched the NL East. Ohtani went five innings of no-hit ball, walking one and striking out five on 68 pitches, before he was pulled.
Nobody really knows how long Ohtani’s leash will be. The Dodgers are still trying to monitor his workload on the mound. Don’t expect him to throw 110 pitches on Saturday. But he’s floated between the 55-80 pitch mark over the last month, with his last start of the season against Arizona ending with 91 pitches.
The biggest Phillies goal of the entire NLDS is working the starting pitcher. Is that a goal for every game? Sort of. But it’s at the top of the list vs. the Dodgers. Their starters are good, and they can get in some crazy grooves. But their bullpen is bad. Really bad. If you caught the two games of the Dodgers vs. Reds series, you saw it.
Rob Thomson has yet to announce a Game 2 starter. It’ll either be Jesus Luzardo or Ranger Suarez. There are some rumblings that it could maybe be Luzardo, due to his home success this season. But nothing is set in stone as of now.
Luke Arcaini writes about the Phillies for Crossing Broad, covers the Phillies for FOX Sports The Gambler, and co-hosts "Phillies Digest" on YouTube. The wave is the worst thing in all of sports. Contact: lukearcaini8@gmail.com