Despite Shohei Ohtani's performance on the mound, the Houston Astros took Game Two of the series with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Los Angeles Dodgers were unable to replicate their explosive offense from their series-opening win against the Houston Astros on Monday.
Even with Shohei Ohtani toeing the rubber in Houston, the Dodgers' offense showcased the bad habits thought extinct in a 2-1 loss on Tuesday night at Daikin Park.
Los Angeles had no answer for Astros starter Peter Lambert, who delivered seven scoreless innings and allowed only three hits.
That is the first time in his career that he reached the seventh inning and had struggled mightily against the Dodgers in the past.
Kyle Tucker provided the only source of run support as he put the Dodgers on the board in the eighth inning with a two-out RBI single.
There were plenty of chances for the Dodgers to score. Runners came plenty, but the offense left eight men on base and were an abysmal 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position.
Ohtani took the mound for his sixth start of the year and pitched into the seventh inning for the first time this season.
That also marks the first time he's reached the seventh inning since July of 2023.
In addition to that, Ohtani gave up two home runs. The first came from Dodgers killer Christian Walker as he launched a moonshot to the train tracks in left field.
The second home run came from the unlikely source of Astros third baseman Braden Shewmake.
Shewmake caught Ohtani's 0-1 heater and took it 337 feet to left field.
Following the two home runs, Ohtani would settle in and would proceed to strike out eight Astros hitters on 89 pitches.
Despite Ohtani not in the starting lineup and soley pitching, it might become more of an occurence. But he doubled down in the postgame that his full-time pitching regime has not affected his results at the plate as of late.
“I don’t think so personally that the pitching has been affecting my hitting," Ohtani said. "At the same time, it has been a little bit longer than my expectations in terms of the hitting side of things.”
So with the offense quiet on a night where Ohtani was bound to just the mound, the Dodgers dropped the second game of this three-game series pitifully.
Looking ahead to Wednesday, Tyler Glasnow will toe the rubber as the Dodgers look to secure the rubber match in an early 11 a.m. Pacific time start.
Join the Community
Don't miss out on our ROUNDTABLE community and the latest news!
It's completely free to join. Share your thoughts, engage with our Roundtable writers, and chat with fellow members.
Download the free Roundtable APP, and stay even more connected!