LOS ANGELES — For all the clamor regarding his poor offensive production to start the season, make no mistake about Shohei Ohtani the pitcher.

If there were any concerns over how he’d fare in his first full season back on the mound in over two years, those have been soundly answered. In his quest to become the first Japanese pitcher to win a Cy Young Award, Ohtani has already firmly re-established himself as one of baseball’s best pitchers. Wednesday night was just the latest example.

Looking to snap a four-game skid, the Los Angeles Dodgers turned to their unicorn on the mound against the Giants. They did so knowing they again wouldn’t have his bat in the lineup — marking the fourth time in his seven starts that manager Dave Roberts has elected to sit Ohtani as a hitter.

But with the way Ohtani has pitched this season, the Dodgers would hardly need it. Ohtani posted seven scoreless innings, scattering four hits and two walks while striking out eight in Los Angeles’ 4-0 victory over the San Francisco Giants. He utilized a heavy mix of his fastball and sweeper, with 89 of his season-high 105 pitches coming via the two. The result was another dominant outing, in which Ohtani lowered his ERA to a MLB-best 0.82.

Shohei Ohtani’s 8th K.

And is fired up. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/ANoQQ3WcCa

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) May 14, 2026

“He wants to be the best pitcher in baseball, and right now, he’s doing it,” Roberts said after the win. “You can tell he’s hyper-focused on the preparation part of it, and then obviously the days that he starts, the execution.”

In his return to a full season of two-way obligations, the Dodgers figured there would be trial and error with Ohtani’s workload. They expected there would be intermittent fatigue, which is partly why they implemented a six-man rotation at the beginning of the year. It’s also why they haven’t always kept his bat in the starting lineup on days he’s pitching — a decision that has been made easier for Roberts as of late, given Ohtani’s slump. Load management is a specialty for this organization, especially when it comes to its prized two-way star.

What the Dodgers were not expecting was for Ohtani’s offensive production to fall as low as it has. His solo homer in Tuesday’s loss was just his second in the last month. His OPS on the season is below .800. Ohtani won’t be in the lineup Thursday either, marking the first time he won’t start as a hitter in consecutive games in his Dodgers tenure. There’s an argument to be made that Ohtani’s commitment to returning to the mound has impacted his hitting.

Ohtani sure looks like a Cy Young candidate. But the Dodgers need his bat at the top of the lineup too. Are there concerns that Ohtani’s fixation on pitching is bleeding into his lack of production at the plate? As he ages, is it becoming too taxing for the 31-year-old to do both at the highest level?

“Hard to say,” Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton. “But I do feel young. I feel good. At my peak. So it’s hard to say.”

Shohei Ohtani strikes out the side with paint! 🎨 pic.twitter.com/UDBxUnAygc

— MLB (@MLB) May 14, 2026

That’s what the Dodgers are configuring as well. To be clear, there are no internal qualms over whether Ohtani is better suited as a hitter or pitcher, or if he needs to emphasize one more than the other. The organization is simply trying to perfect the usage formula. They are comfortable using these first several weeks of the season to do so.

“It’s interesting because last year, there was a lot of conversations that he shouldn’t pitch and just be a hitter,” Roberts said. “Now, it’s kind of flipped on its head. I can’t imagine what goes through his mind, but I do feel clarity on how we’re managing him. There’s no one way to go about it. You’re just trying to be fluid, and react and respond to how he’s feeling.”

Roberts has maintained that Ohtani has been open to more rest throughout the season, though the manager has been adamant that he won’t sit Ohtani on every pitching start day. But right now, the skipper explained, what’s best for Ohtani is more physical recovery.

“It’s always good to have him in the lineup, but I think that we’re doing it for the right reasons,” Roberts said. “We’re doing it for him to give him the best chance to be the best player he can be. Yeah, it doesn’t feel good not writing him in the lineup tomorrow. But that’s just the way it is. And we’ve wrapped our heads around that and feel fine about it.”

Ohtani has lamented his offense and did so again after his start Wednesday. “It’s trial and error,” he said about what he’s working on in the box. Ohtani also said he was “good” with the team’s decision to work in an extra rest day. It’s clear, however, that for as preoccupied as he is with his performance on the mound, he’s far from satisfied with what he’s doing at the plate.

“(The) ideal situation is to be great on both sides of the ball,” Ohtani said. “But how I look at it is if I’m not contributing offensively, then I know I can contribute on the pitching side of things and vice versa. So I take it as that.”

The Dodgers will, too, at least for now.