LOS ANGELES — The day’s planned availabilities had just ended and reporters were starting to trickle out of the media conference room on the lower level of Dodger Stadium when word arrived that another unscheduled speaker would soon be appearing.
Moments later, Shohei Ohtani arrived with a message. He may be dealing with knee and biceps issues. We’ve all seen the off-balance swings and the inflated strikeout rate this post-season. But despite those results, Ohtani feels strong enough physically to help the Los Angeles Dodgers come back from a 2-0 deficit in the NLCS.
And not only have his symptoms improved, but he also feels he’s trending in the right direction mechanically.
“The symptoms shouldn't be the reason why I can't hit,” he said via an interpreter. “And even if the injuries happen by accident, I take full responsibility. I take that as an opportunity for me to just take full responsibility for it. Today it's going to be another process for me to tinker and try new things.”
Not everyone will be convinced that Ohtani’s fully ready to go. Skeptics will point to his three hits — all singles — in 20 post-season at-bats this season. They’ll note that his strikeout rate has gone up in October.
And fair enough. He hasn’t produced. But this was a message Ohtani clearly wanted to deliver, as he took time out of his day to address the media, which he doesn’t do every day or even every week. Nearby, agent Nez Balelo was on hand to ensure things went as smoothly as possible the day after reports surfaced that the Dodgers were considering proceeding without Ohtani in the starting lineup.
But ultimately, what matters is what Dodgers president Andrew Friedman and manager Dave Roberts think. In conversation with Roberts, Ohtani was "adamant" that he’s good enough to help. That conviction was all Roberts needed. In Game 3 (Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET on Sportsnet and Sportsnet+), with the Dodgers playing something close to a must-win game, Ohtani will play.
"Talking to him, he feels like he's close to finding something," Roberts said. "With that, I'm excited. I'm all about it. So he'll be in there.
"I do think that Shohei has taken this as a personal challenge."
Of course close is one thing, and what the Dodgers need right now are results — not players who are close to delivering results. The ball was flying off Ohtani's bat in batting practice before Monday’s game, with nine home runs clearing the outfield wall to all fields.
But once the games begin, Ohtani’s swings are often uncomfortable-looking. To validate Roberts’ faith, that must change immediately.
“It's a constant, ongoing process that's headed in the right direction,” Ohtani said.
The likely alternative to Ohtani is Josue de Paula, the rookie outfielder who hit 27 home runs with a .948 OPS at triple-A before impressing in limited action for the Dodgers. If Ohtani were so physically compromised that he can’t swing, de Paula would be a viable choice.
But once Ohtani says he can go, are the Dodgers really going to bench him? Set aside egos, do they really believe de Paula can outperform Ohtani? The rookie might offer more slug, but Ohtani has still been on base consistently, with Monday’s game the first time all post-season he failed to reach.
And even in his diminished form, the two-way star is a far better baserunner than de Paula, who has been pinch-run for upon reaching. Ultimately, the Dodgers are sticking with the all-time great here. They’re accepting that he’s not at his best, but trusting that Shohei Ohtani vs. Robert Gasser is still a pretty good matchup, especially after a day off.
"I’ve never wavered in my belief in him," Roberts said.
Common themes for final four
Various common threads connect MLB’s final four teams. For one, they all received first-round byes, a reminder that there is no rust vs. rest debate in baseball. Choose rest — and the automatic advancement that comes with it — every time.
But more broadly, those teams earned byes with strong regular season play. They do it in different ways — the Dodgers are MLB’s biggest spenders while the other three LCS teams operate on modest budgets — but these four teams are consistently among MLB’s best, with at least six post-season appearances apiece over the last decade.
How do they do it? Player development is a strength of all four organizations, with homegrown players like Andy Pages, Jose Ramirez, Gavin Williams, Jonathan Aranda, Brice Turang and Jacob Misiorowski all making a meaningful difference.
Alongside those efforts there’s also player acquisition — identifying the right targets and acquiring them via trade and free agency. Along with clubs like the Yankees and Padres, these final four teams are among the best in baseball at assessing talent and obtaining it. Reinforcing that point, the likes of Max Muncy, Cade Smith, Junior Caminero, Drew Rasmussen, Yandy Diaz and William Contreras were all acquired via trade or minor league free agency.
That’s not to say these front offices don’t miss, of course. The Guardians would love to have Caminero back. The Rays would love to have Cristopher Sanchez and Joe Ryan. The Brewers probably wish they could have gotten Willy Adames without giving up Rasmussen. And remember how the Astros got Yordan Alvarez? The Dodgers don’t want to. But in the balance, these teams come out ahead.
Interestingly, there’s significant overlap between the four leadership groups, too. Rays manager Kevin Cash coached in Cleveland before joining the Rays and top execs Matt Arnold of the Brewers and Erik Neander of the Rays worked under Dodgers president Andrew Friedman before taking over their current responsibilities.
“Both are very creative, big motors, really good leaders,” Friedman said. “To see each of their respective teams having success is not surprising at all. I think the creative thought but also the ability to connect and relate to everyone, it's not surprising that they have organizations that are so synced up, and watching them have the success they've had is awesome.”
Generally speaking, it’s an analytically strong final four with large departments devoted to understanding the quantifiable aspects of baseball. But alongside that push there’s an old-school component to what they do as the Dodgers still embrace traditional scouting and the Brewers play small-ball, for instance.
So while the search for patterns or trends is understandable this time of year, there’s no simple reason why these teams are where they are. They do a lot of things at an elite level and there’s not really a secret sauce here — just a lot of high-quality ingredients.
From Nashville to the NLCS
When the season began, Brewers Game 3 starter Robert Gasser was sharing an Airbnb in Nashville with fellow pitchers Shane Drohan and Logan Henderson. Now they're vital parts of a Brewers team that has a 2-0 lead over the Dodgers in the NLCS.
“Being in the major leagues is insane,” Gasser said. “I don’t know how to put it into words.”
For Gasser, it’s an incredible story. Bigger picture it’s a reminder of the importance of depth.
History in the making
Regardless of who wins the 2026 World Series, the outcome will be historic:
A Dodgers win would lead to MLB’s first three-peat since the 1998-2000 Yankees. A Guardians win would end the sport’s longest World Series drought dating back to 1948. And either the Brewers or Rays would be first-time champions.
Along with the Mariners, Padres and Rockies, the Brewers and Rays are two of the five MLB franchises never to win it all.
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