"He lived up to the hype" - Dodgers manager Dave Roberts thrilled with Shohei Ohtani's Spring Training debut

On Tuesday, Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani made his Spring Training debut against the Chicago White Sox. The two-way superstar justified all the hype surrounding him and impressed everyone with his performance.

In an interview with SportsNet LA after the game, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts expressed his enthusiasm about Ohtani’s debut performance:

“Really impressive, squared two balls up. And, you know, obviously, he lived up to the hype,” Dave Roberts said. “And everyone excited about his debut and hits a homer backside. It was good that he gave the people what they wanted.”

Furthermore, when asked about the team’s lineup, Roberts showed his confidence in both the lineup and the players’ talent for the upcoming season:

“You know what? It looks right. I think that Mookie, the last couple days, is swinging about well and being a guy that gets on base and has Shohei behind him. And obviously he looked good today and has Freddie behind him and Will Smith, who's swinging the bat better. It just adds a lot of length and certainly a lot of talent.”

Yoshinobu Yamamoto, another key summer acquisition of the Dodgers, is expected to make his Spring Training debut on Wednesday against the Texas Rangers. Roberts has high expectations for the star pitcher and believes that he will perform well:

“It's gonna be fun. My expectation is that he's gonna be able to manage his emotions. And he's gonna be somewhere in the mid to upper 90s and he'll go two innings and I expect him to be good.”

Shohei Ohtani at No. 2 spot between Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman

The Dodgers lineup includes three former MVPs, and Dave Roberts may have found out the ideal formula to get the best out of all three.

Mookie Betts featured in the leadoff spot while Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman slotted in right behind him against the White Sox.

Roberts also said that Ohtani’s No. 2 spot isn’t permanent, and that he wants to see how it will work out before the 2024 season starts.

The Dodgers got off to a good start with this new lineup as Betts recorded a single hit and Ohtani notched a two-run homer in three at-bats, but Freeman couldn’t manage to get a hit and went 0-for-2. The Dodgers won against the White Sox with a final score of 9-6.