After an up-and-down regular season, the Dodgers begin their title defense tonight in Southern California. If Los Angeles is going to make a return trip to the World Series, Shohei Ohtani will certainly play a big role. What can fans and bettors expect tonight from the MVP front runner?
Los Angeles is favored (-206) over Cincinnati, with the over/under set at seven runs. Before the start of Tuesday’s postseason matchup, here’s my favorite Shohei Ohtani player prop bet on DraftKings Sportsbook.
Shohei Ohtani over 0.5 walks (-120)
What more can be said about Shohei Ohtani at this point? Even ignoring the two-way star’s pitching skills, he remains one of baseball’s most terrifying hitters. Through 158 games this season, he’s slashing .282/.392/.622 with 55 home runs and 102 RBIs. It would be a major shock if the three-time MVP didn’t add to his collection this fall.
It’s not as if the Japanese superstar has shown any signs of slowing down recently. Over his last ten games, Ohtani is batting .275 with five homers and eight RBIs. Playing alongside a star-studded Dodgers lineup, there’s always ample opportunity for #17 to produce.
Still, even the great ones have certain pitchers they struggle against. So far, that’s been the case for Ohtani when facing Hunter Greene. The fireballer has held LA’s face of the franchise to just one hit over seven career at-bats. To be fair, it’s not as if Shohei is the only player that has faltered in this spot. Over 107.2 innings of work this season, Greene owns a 2.76 ERA, 0.94 WHIP and 11.0 K/9 ratio.
Will tonight be more of the same for Cincinnati’s ace? Regardless of what’s happened in the past, it’s foolish to assume any future success against Ohtani. While there aren’t many numbers to back this up, it’s difficult to envision this generational talent being held in check tonight.
If there’s any weakness for Greene, it’s an occasional lack of control. The righty has done a solid job with his command this year. However, it’s possible he has difficulty finding the zone vs. this patient LA lineup. In comparison, Ohtani is more than content to take a free base (15.0 BB%). Keeping that in mind, expect the slugger to secure a walk or two on Tuesday.
