Forty-one games into the season, and hitter Shohei Ohtani has not found success on the plate so far. After Shohei Ohtani went 0-for-5 with two strikeouts against the San Francisco Giants on Monday, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts acknowledged he might bench baseball’s best player to help him reset.

Roberts has already kept Ohtani away from the plate on three of his six start days to reduce his workload. However, after Monday, Roberts told the reporters that Ohtani would not feature in the lineup in one of the games against the Giants. The manager is considering giving him a full mental day off.

“Yes,” said Roberts when asked about giving Ohtani a break, per Dodger Blue on X. “He’s pitching on Wednesday, and I haven’t decided if he’s going to, you know, one of those days he is not going to hit. I haven’t decided. But on top of that, given what we’re asking of him on the pitching side, it’s a fair question.”

Ohtani is back to being a full-time two-way player this season for the first time since 2023. Though he did not hit in three of his starts, Ohtani has contributed in every game one way or another. However, in the current scenario, Roberts might consider giving him a full day off.

Ohtani’s last home run on April 26 against the Chicago Cubs snapped a 59-plate appearance drought; he’s now gone 13 games without one. Since then, it has been 13 games or 51 plate appearances that Ohtani has not hit a long ball. After his last homer, he has seven hits in 43 at-bats, hitting .163/.294/.209 with seven walks and 12 strikeouts.

Ohtani’s decline at the plate has been worrying. He is swinging less at pitches in the zone and falling behind in counts. Against the Giants, Ohtani grounded out thrice. The Dodger superstar’s hitting slump has also affected the team. Following Monday’s 9-3 loss at Dodger Stadium, the Dodgers fell to second in the NL West with a 24-17 record.

“I think even early on, when he wasn’t right, he was still taking walks and getting on base,” Roberts noted. “But I think right now, and tonight was a classic example, I think he’s just trying to swing out of it. So that’s just apparent. And a lot of hitters, when they are scuffling, they want to kind of swing out of it.”

Though Ohtani has previously insisted that his pitching duties do not affect his batting, it is evident that the two-way phenom is bothered by his recent drought.

“I don’t think so personally, that pitching has been affecting my hitting. But at the same time, it has been a little bit longer than my expectations, in terms of the hitting side of things,” Ohtani had said in Houston.

To snap out of his skid, the Japanese broke routine to take batting practice on the field before Monday’s game.

According to Dodgers hitting coach Aaron Bates via the NY Post, Ohtani took batting practice before his bullpen session during the recent Houston series, which left him tired for pitching. This time, he did the opposite and hit after throwing.

His worst career homerless streak lasted 93 plate appearances back in 2022 with the Angels. However, the player and the franchise will both hope it does not come to that.

Meanwhile, the Dodgers have opted to bolster their depth via trade.

The Dodgers acquired outfielder Alek Thomas

In a recent move, the Dodgers traded 17-year-old Jose Requena in exchange for Alek Thomas of the Arizona Diamondbacks. The Dodgers had reportedly signed Requena on a $372,500 bonus in January.

Following his .181/.222/.340 production at the plate this season, the Diamondbacks designated Thomas for assignment on May 8. The Dodgers picked him up following the move. However, Thomas will not feature on their active roster at the moment. To make room for him, the Dodgers designated Michael Siani for assignment. They had claimed Siani off waivers from the New York Yankees in February.

Last season, Thomas hit .249 with 9 homers and 38 RBI for the Diamondbacks. Arizona designated Thomas for assignment to make room for their top prospect, Ryan Waldschmidt.

While being second in the NL West might not seem too bad for any other team, for the back-to-back World Series champions, anything less than the top of the table seems unacceptable. Hence, Dave Roberts must figure out fast how to bring his team and their superstar to the top of their game.