Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani enters Cy Young discussion with 0.82 ERA

Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani enters Cy Young discussion with 0.82 ERA originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

After losing four straight games, the Los Angeles Dodgers won on Wednesday (4-0) over the San Francisco Giants. The Dodgers had their second ace on the mound, right-hander Shohei Ohtani, who helped to be the stopper the Dodgers needed to end the losing streak.

Ohtani, who was not in manager Dave Roberts lineup, tossed seven shutout innings, allowing four hits, two walks, and striking out eight on 105 pitches (71 strikes). According to OptaSTATS, Ohtani's scoreless outing came after hitting a home run the day before, which is the sixth time he'd done that in his career. The only other player to perform the same feat in the modern era was Hall of Famer Walter Johnson in 1909 (Aug. 16-17).

Ohtani, with his performance against the Giants, lowered his season ERA to 0.82 (44.0 innings), which is putting him in the discussion for the National League Cy Young Award.

Los Angeles Dodger Shohei Ohtani is entering the Cy Young race with his low ERA

According to Dodgers writer for MLB.com, Sonja Chen, reaching 44.0 innings on Wednesday has Ohtani qualified for the ERA leaderboard in Major League Baseball, where he sits at the top.

Ohtani's 0.82 ERA is the second-lowest by a Dodgers pitcher in their first seven starts since Fernando Valenzuela (0.29) did so in 1981. Valenzuela would win the Cy Young award and Rookie of the Year that season, going 13-7 with a 2.48 ERA in 25 starts.

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Roberts called Ohtani a "different person" when he's pitching, which shows in his dominance.

"Like I've said for a long time, he's a different person when he's pitching," manager Dave Roberts said to Chen. "I think he wants to win the Cy Young. I think that that helps the Dodgers, too, in 2026. When he's pitching, I just sort of let him go and … he's in a zone."

Ohtani's dominance on the mound has come at a cost, with his performance at the plate not as great. In 43 games, Ohtani is hitting .240 with a .797 OPS and has seven home runs.

Ohtani's strong performance on the mound will likely have him finish in the top three in the Cy Young voting this season. However, that could cost him his third consecutive MVP award (fourth overall). Other position players like Atlanta Braves first baseman Matt Olson (.295 batting average/1.013 OPS) or Colorado Rockies outfielder Mickey Moniak (.315/1.051) have made stronger cases to win the MVP.

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