For the third time in four playoff games, Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani has a new spot in the lineup.
Ohtani was in the cleanup spot for Wednesday’s National League Division Series Game 4 on the road against the Atlanta Braves.
Ohtani hit in the No. 2 spot for the first two games of the series at Los Angeles, then was dropped to fifth for Game 3 on Tuesday at Atlanta when the Dodgers finished off a 3-1 victory to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five series.
It was the first time Ohtani batted lower than second since joining the Dodgers in 2024.
Like in Game 3, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts had Mookie Betts batting leadoff followed by Freddie Freeman. Teoscar Hernandez was dropped from third to fifth for Game 4, while Will Smith moved up a spot to third in the order.
Ohtani, 32, batted .275 with an .889 OPS, 30 home runs and 81 RBIs this season but has been bothered by right biceps and left knee discomfort during the second half of the season. Continued biceps soreness landed him on the injured list late in the regular season.
Ohtani has not hit a home run since Aug. 18, a run of 21 games since he last went deep, including three games during the playoffs. He is 2-for-10 (.200) with one walk and three strikeouts in the division series, but did reach base on catcher’s interference and a walk in Game 3.
Ohtani last started a game in the cleanup spot during the 2022 season with the Los Angeles Angels. He has started just 35 games in the cleanup spot in nine major league seasons.
