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Ever since signing for the Los Angeles Dodgers, superstar Shohei Ohtani has been one of the best hitters in all of Major League Baseball. Having been moved to the leadoff spot in June of last year, Ohtani has then gone on to make the spot his own.
Spearheading a formidable top three, followed by the likes of Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman, the Dodgers are, as one would expect, one of the most potent offenses in all of baseball. As of writing, the Dodgers lead the majors in terms of overall batting average at .267 and OPS at. 812.
According to insider Brian Kenny, however, the team could enjoy even more success at the plate were they to consider moving Shohei Ohtani deeper in the lineup. Kenny argued his case on Wednesday's episode of 'MLB Now'.
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"In my opnion, [Shohei Ohtani has] too much slug to be leading off. The Dodgers are getting too cute. They have options, that's too much power to use that man to lead off. They are leaving runs on the table. The leadoff man does not get enough traffic on the bases." Brian Kenny said.
"Ohtani right now, he has 23 home runs, 17 of them are solo home runs. He has 39 RBIs, that proportion doesn't make sense. Now, he leads the league in runs scored, but even on a club with a deep lineup, it doesn't seem like the Dodgers are maximizing that high level of production." Kenny added.
Making a counter-argument, MLB insider brings up Shohei Ohtani's strikeout statistics
Challenging Bryan Kenny's aforementioned argument, insider Anthony Recker talked about how Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman, who strike out less than Shohei Ohtani, may be better options to send to the plate when the Dodgers have runners on.
"From a team persepctive, I like the idea of having him in the leadoff spot, just because, he's the guy, out of the top four, that strikes out the highest rate. This is guy that strikes out 25% [of the time], compared to around 17-18 for Will Smith and Freddie Freeman, and 9% for Mookie Betts. When you combine that, I say, I would rather have those guys that strike out a little bit less, better bat to ball skills, in those situations, if I know Shohei's going to be on [base[ 40% of the time." Recker said
Though it is an interesting proposition given Ohtani's fantastic ability to record clutch hits with runners in scoring position, it is unlikely Dave Roberts tinkers with a hitting lineup that is already performing so well.
