The Dodgers have been riding high, leading the NL West with authority and flashing the kind of all-around dominance. Enough for the fans to dream of a deep October run. But if history has taught them anything, it’s that regular-season dominance can quickly unravel under the postseason spotlight, especially when avoidable mistakes creep into the game. And now, those cracks are starting to show.

Last month’s stumble against the Brewers, marred by three costly defensive errors, seemed like an isolated lapse. But the ghosts of that night returned with chilling familiarity in the latest series against the Cardinals. Despite Shohei Ohtani’s brilliance on both sides of the ball, the Dodgers couldn’t overcome their own self-inflicted wounds. And misplays in the field once again stole the spotlight, dooming them in Game 3 and costing them the series, 1-2.

Now, one of the central figures in those fielding struggles is breaking his silence, shedding light on what’s really been going wrong behind the gloves. “We could have executed a couple of balls. Mooki got a ball short. I should have told him to throw to me at second base so we could get the lead out, and I feel like that was the game right there,” said Dodgers’ $11 million man Miguel Rojas, sharing how it went wrong between him and Mookie Betts that caused the Cardinals’ Jordan Walker to steal second base.

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I saw it off the bat. As soon as it got up, it got right in the sun. I lost it. When I found it again, it was on the way down and I couldn’t glove it. Unfortunately, that happened. I wish I could have told Mookie ahead of time that the sun was right there and I would need some help. I thought I was going to catch it. But it got right in the sun,” he further added.

Well, the Cardinals managed to scratch out their only run off Ohtani without even hitting the ball out of the infield. The story started in the third inning when Rojas lost a routine pop-up in the bright afternoon sun. That allowed Jordan Walker to reach base. Walker then stole second, moved to third on a groundout by Victor Scott II. After a quiet second inning for both teams, that quirky sequence was enough for St. Louis to break through and put a run on the board.

And the Dodgers’ fielding slump didn’t end there. The Cardinals took the lead in the eighth inning thanks to some clutch hitting and a bit of chaos on the bases. With two outs and two runners on, Walker came through with a single to center off Alex Vesia. That tied the game at 3-3. While Masyn Winn hustled to third, Dodgers rookie third baseman Alex Freeland’s throw let him dash home with the go-ahead run.

And the Dodgers went all down despite Ohtani’s heroics.

Shohei Ohtani’s heroics went in vain for the Dodgers

Well, Shohei Ohtani put on a show on Wednesday. He delivered a performance that reminded everyone why he’s one of the most electrifying players in baseball. Not only did he blast a go-ahead two-run HR, his 39th of the season, but that same swing also marked a major milestone: his 1,000th career hit. And wait, that’s not all. On the mound, the Dodgers’ star looked sharp as well. He struck out a season-high eight batters over four innings in what turned out to be his longest pitching outing of the season so far.

“I thought it was a big day for me personally, getting to the fourth inning. That was really good in terms of building up,” the Japanese ace said after the game. At the plate, Ohtani had already made noise earlier in the game. After Alex Call led off with a double, he absolutely crushed a pitch to straightaway center field. It went 440 feet into the stands to break a 1-1 tie and give the Dodgers a 2-1 lead. That home run also ended a rare dry spell for Ohtani after the last nine games.

On the mound, he was efficient and effective, as he threw 54 pitches, 37 of which were strikes, while giving up just one run and two hits. It was a glimpse of the dominant two-way talent fans were used to seeing before his surgery. Just that the Dodgers couldn’t convert the Ohtani magic into a positive result at the end of the day.