The Los Angeles Dodgers recently celebrated Shohei Ohtani’s offensive prowess with a bobblehead commemorating his 2024 50-50 campaign. In a recent 5-1 win over the Reds, Ohtani struck out nine batters and helped offensively by ending Nick Lodolo’s streak of nine straight outs with a single. Manager Dave Roberts praised him, saying, “Today was a complete performance by Shohei.” Despite the accolades, some argue that Ohtani’s offensive output has declined compared to 2023 and 2024, a point noted by Ken Rosenthal.

While Shohei Ohtani is on track for a likely fourth unanimous MVP award, manager Dave Roberts was temporarily blamed for an alleged decline in his offensive output. The debate stemmed from a fan question posed to Klein, co-host of the Dodgers Incline podcast.

The question was, “What do you think about Shohei Ohtani’s performance declining since Coach Roberts told him to stop aiming for home runs and instead play baseball by hitting the ball lightly?” The longtime fan argued that it was wrong on Roberts end to ask Ohtani—one of the best at hitting long balls—to focus on light contact instead of swinging for the fences.

In recent weeks, many balls that could have been crushing home runs with full power swings have ended up as flyouts. This approach should be reconsidered. The fan emphasized that Ohtani should start aiming for home runs instead of light hitting. To that, Klein quickly put the debate to rest, saying, “I don’t feel a decline. If anything, Shohei Ohtani has been better since he put on a Dodgers uniform.”

That’s true to some extent. Ohtani is delivering well on the pitching end as well this year. For the first time as a Dodger, Ohtani completed five innings last week in the Dodgers’ 5-1 win over the Reds.

He allowed just one run while setting season highs with nine strikeouts and 87 pitches. On the offensive side, however, he still posts elite totals. Yet, his recent form dipped noticeably in August. His batting average dipped to .167 with 6 hits and 2 home runs in 10 games. Will it affect his MVP race?

How’s the MVP race coming along for Shohei Ohtani?

Well, the MVP vote is always subjective. It’s neither about the best player nor about the highest WAR or having the best story. Voters set their own standards, and this season’s races are especially tricky because the comparisons aren’t straightforward.

For Shohei Ohtani specifically, after recovering from elbow and shoulder surgeries, he didn’t enter the mound at all until June 16. His two-way power wasn’t justified until then as a Dodger. This season, as we’re nearing its end, he is projected to throw roughly half the innings he did during his 2021 and 2023 MVP seasons.

Ohtani’s pitching consistency could become a bigger discussion point if he struggles any more in the remainder of the games. Hopefully, that will be unlikely.

Even after two subpar starts last week, he bounced back by striking out a season-high nine batters over five innings. Coming to the offensive side, he isn’t at the same level he was in 2023 and 2024. That era was when he couldn’t pitch but hit 54 home runs and stole 59 bases. He may be stealing fewer bases this year, but he’s still a more skilled base runner than Kyle Schwarber.

For now, as hitters, Shohei Ohtani and Schwarber are closer in performance than some might think. They’re much closer than Aaron Judge and Cal Raleigh.

Shohei Ohtani continues to be a dominant two-way force for the Dodgers despite some recent offensive dips. As the MVP race tightens, his ability to balance pitching and hitting will be crucial in determining his season’s legacy.