Los Angeles Dodgers two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani aims to bolster his MVP and Cy Young cases on Friday night, taking the mound against the rival San Diego Padres at Dodger Stadium.
Ohtani, 31, enters the NL West grudge match with an OPS north of .900 and an ERA south of 2.00 for the defending champs. The Dodgers (57–31, 1st NL West) took Thursday’s series opener, 12–7, and have won eight of their last ten games. Ohtani now looks to set the tone on both ends to keep the momentum rolling against the spiraling Padres (43–43, 2nd NL West), who have dropped six straight.
First pitch is at 10:10 p.m. ET. The Dodgers enter as 1.5-run home favorites with -252 moneyline odds on DraftKings Sportsbook. The Padres are +203 underdogs, with the game total set at O/U eight runs.
Let’s break down my Shohei Ohtani “Two-Way Parlay” for Friday’s contest, with a breakdown of both picks.
Best Shohei Two-Way Parlay for Padres vs. Dodgers
Shohei Ohtani 3+ Hits + Runs + RBIs / 1 or Fewer Earned Runs Allowed (+296)
Shohei Ohtani 3+ Hits + Runs + RBIs (+127)
On May 12 — ahead of LA’s game against the Giants — Shohei Ohtani found himself mired in an 11-game home run drought, tied for his longest since joining the Dodgers. Man, does that feel like a long time ago.
Ohtani launched one deep into the night against San Francisco that evening, kickstarting a searing stretch in which he’s crushed 12 of his 18 home runs over the last 43 games. During that span, he ranks third in MLB with a .344 batting average, while pacing the majors in wRC+ (194), wOBA (.457), and OPS (1.089). His .935 OPS in 2026 trails only New York’s Juan Soto for the top mark in the National League.
Swinging one of the hottest bats in the game, Ohtani now draws one of his favorite pitching matchups: San Diego’s Michael King. The 31-year-old right-hander has posted a respectable 3.55 ERA this season. However, his 4.76 xERA and middling strikeout numbers indicate some serious batted-ball windfall. King’s underlying metrics always seem to bubble to the surface against Ohtani, who is 9-for-21 (.429) with three home runs, two doubles, and five RBIs in their past meetings.
Shohei Ohtani 1 or Fewer Earned Runs Allowed (-118)
The Padres would have a hard time hitting off a tee — and that’s putting it mildly. They rank 27th in wRC+, 29th in wOBA, and dead last in batting average in 2026.
San Diego’s hitting woes have continued to fester amid an MLB-worst 12–23 nosedive since May 24. While Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado are finally remembering how to hit, they’ve been unable to save the sinking ship. The Padres sit 28th in total runs scored during this lifeless stretch.
All you can say is “good luck” when they’re stacked up against one of the most formidable arms on Earth. Ohtani is arguably having his best pitching season to date — his microscopic 1.58 ERA lags ever so slightly behind Milwaukee’s Jacob Misiorowski for the MLB lead (min. 50 IP). Ohtani ranks fifth in MLB with a 0.90 WHIP, while placing in the top 94 percent of pitchers in xERA (2.69), average fastball velocity (97.9 mph), and barrel rate (3.6%).
Ohtani has scuffled slightly on the mound recently, allowing multiple earned runs in three consecutive starts. However, the Cy Young contender has held teams to one or fewer earned runs in nine of his 13 starts overall. That laundry list of gems includes a five-inning shutout in San Diego on May 20.
