Dodgers’ Dave Roberts Sends Shohei Ohtani Message As Concerns Mount

BusinessSportsMoneyDodgers’ Dave Roberts Sends Shohei Ohtani Message As Concerns MountByPeter Chawaga,Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Peter Chawaga is a writer and editor covering Major League Baseball.Follow AuthorApr 27, 2026, 08:00am EDTWASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 03: Manager Dave Roberts #30 of the Los Angeles Dodgers looks on during batting practice prior to the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on Friday, April 3, 2026 in Washington, District of Columbia. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/MLB Photos via Getty Images)MLB Photos via Getty ImagesThe Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Chicago Cubs in shutout fashion on Sunday, salvaging just one series of their last three as they enjoyed a bounceback performance from their franchise player.With some concerns growing around an offensive slump for Shohei Ohtani, Sunday’s turnaround might have been the performance he needed to break out of it.“The most positive offensive signs came from Ohtani,” The Orange County Register’s Bill Plunkett wrote of Sunday’s game. “He was on base four times in the game with a walk, a single, a double (his first extra-base hit in six games) and a solo home run (his first home run since April 12).”ForbesDodgers’ 2-Time All-Star Calls For Change To ‘Shohei Ohtani Rule’By Peter ChawagaLos Angeles Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani Turns Heads With Struggles At The PlateThough Ohtani has been one of the sport’s best pitchers in his first season back to full health at the mound in some time, with a 0.38 ERA in his first four starts for the Dodgers, his hitting has been uncharacteristically pedestrian.Ohtani has a .240/.371/.430 slash line so far this season, well below his career averages, and perhaps most notable is his 31 strikeouts so far compared to just 24 hits. Going into Sunday’s game he was in a pronounced drought that saw him strike out 11 times in the team’s previous seven games, five of which were losses. MORE FOR...