From his delivery to his follow-through, the two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani didn’t look quite like himself in Wednesday’s game against the Cincinnati Reds. And, it was enough for the manager Dave Roberts to rush in the middle of an at-bat to check up on his star. Ohtani eventually exited the mound in the fourth inning after throwing six consecutive balls.

Ohtani’s return to pitching has been anything but rushed. He made his pitching debut as a Dodger on June 16, and his starts were intentionally kept brief. The three-time MVP maxed out at three innings entering Wednesday, allowing two runs across six starts and striking out 13 batters to three walks. However, on Wednesday, he appeared to express discomfort.

Across the first three innings against the Reds, Ohtani pushed through the cramps, but by the top of the fourth inning, he gave in and made an early exit. “I felt it in the first inning and just try to work around it, and I was able to do so up until the third, and it didn’t quite work out in the fourth,” he told the reporters after the game.

“The good thing about today’s outing is that my pitch count was where I wanted it to be. You know, I think this is a step forward in a sense. You know, I didn’t really feel great, to be honest, physically the last couple days, so in terms of that, yeah,” the Japanese further added.

Ohtani’s last six pitches had five fastballs. Two of them went wild while the other two missed the zone. His last pitch was a sweeper. After he was done with pitching, he made his way to the dugout and had a brief conversation with Roberts and the training staff. It raised eyebrows across the stadium because he had left mid-inning. But it was just a precautionary move, as it turned out later.

Moreover, the two-way star still took part in the game as a DH after leaving the mound.

From pitching to DH: Ohtani pushed through the cramps

Ohtani’s exit from the mound stirred tension all across the dugout. Roberts himself admitted, “In the moment, very concerning, because I didn’t know what it was.” The skipper revealed Ohtani first said it was his hip, but it later turned out to be the cramps, and that eased his mind.

Ohtani decided to stay in the game and went 0-for-5 at the plate. He admitted after the game that his swings were not affected by the cramps. It was just his pitching that took a toll. He ended up giving five hits in the game, which included one run-scoring single to Elly de La Cruz.

Throughout this season, Ohtani has recorded a 2.40 ERA over 25 innings. So, despite limited starts, his numbers have been decent. And as a hitter, he’s leading the National League with his incredible 38 home runs, only trailing Cal Raleigh’s 41 home runs.

As it seems right now, the decision to take him off the mound on Wednesday was just precautionary on the Dodgers’ part, much to the fans’ relief.

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