Ohtani rues ‘regrettable’ inning, takes Game 4 loss
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Alden Gonzalez
LOS ANGELES — After Shohei Ohtani mowed through the middle of the Toronto Blue Jays‘ lineup in the top of the sixth Tuesday, Dodgers pitching coach Mark Prior approached him in the dugout and asked how many innings he had left, conscious of the potential toll from the previous game. Ohtani answered affirmatively. “Three more innings,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts recalled him saying, perhaps half-jokingly.
Two batters later, though, he was finished.
One night after setting a postseason record by reaching base nine times in an 18-inning marathon, Ohtani performed as a two-way player in Game 4 of the World Series and was, well, mortal, going hitless in the batter’s box and getting tagged with the loss on the mound.
Ohtani, speaking through an interpreter after a 6-2 loss that evened this best-of-seven series at two games apiece, said he was “able to get on the mound in pretty good condition.” He received intravenous fluid to address leg cramps moments after the Dodgers came away from a 6-hour, 39-minute Game 3 with a walk-off victory, got to bed by roughly 2 a.m. PT and received what he called “quality sleep.”
But it didn’t result in a show-stopping performance, which, given what he did in the pennant clincher — three home runs as a hitter, six scoreless innings and 10 strikeouts as a pitcher — has somehow become the expectation.
“Every time he steps up, I expect great things to happen,” Roberts said, “and maybe unfairly.”
Ohtani drew a walk to start the game, reaching base for the 11th consecutive time but struck out in his next two plate appearances and later grounded out. Through his first six innings as a pitcher, he struck out six batters and gave up only a two-run homer to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. — on a sweeper that leaked out over the plate, which he called “a regrettable pitch.”
When the seventh inning began, the Dodgers trailed by only a run and Ohtani had thrown 90 pitches. Three pitches later, after a single by Daulton Varsho and a 101.7-mph double by Ernie Clement, Roberts turned to his bullpen. The Blue Jays went on to score four runs with Anthony Banda and Blake Treinen on the mound.
“I wanted to go seven,” Ohtani said, “and it was regrettable that I wasn’t able to finish that inning.”
Ohtani’s first postseason as a starting pitcher is officially over now, ending with a 2-1 record, a 3.50 ERA and 25 strikeouts against five walks in 18 innings. If he pitches again, it would be out of the bullpen in Game 6 or a potential Game 7, something he told Japanese reporters he was willing to do.
Ohtani threw his fastball mostly in the 96 to 97 mph range but was able to reach for 98 and 99 mph when he needed to on two-strike counts. Rather than consistently try to throw into the triple digits, Ohtani seemed conscious about picking his spots. On offense, Roberts complimented Ohtani’s “intent” and attributed his lack of success to the quality of the pitches he saw, not his exertions from the night before. The leg cramps that manifested in Monday’s 11th inning did not appear to be an issue. Ohtani credited his catcher, Will Smith, for taking down all 18 innings on Monday night and then catching another nine Tuesday. Overall, he seemed grateful for an incredibly active 27-hour stretch.
“Although we did lose the game,” Ohtani said, “I thought I had a productive experience being able to experience this situation.”
All the Toronto Blue Jays had to do after losing an 18-inning epic in Game 3 of the 2025 World Series was bounce back quickly — and beat starting pitcher/DH Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 4.
Well, they did just that — and the Fall Classic is tied at 2-2. With the series sure to head back to Toronto, what will happen in the final game in L.A.? Game 5’s winner will be one victory from a ring; the loser will be one loss from heartbreak.
Follow all the action — from live analysis during the game to our postgame takeaways — right here.
Key links: World Series schedule, results
Live analysis
Gamecast: Follow the action pitch-by-pitch here
The Minnesota Twins are hiring former Pittsburgh Pirates manager Derek Shelton to be the team’s new manager, sources confirmed to ESPN’s Jeff Passan on Wednesday.
Shelton, who was fired on May 8 as the Pirates quickly slipped into last place in the National League Central, will replace Rocco Baldelli, who was fired by Minnesota on Sept. 29.
The 55-year-old Shelton was the bench coach for the Twins in 2018 and 2019 under two different managers, Paul Molitor and Baldelli.
New York Yankees hitting coach James Rowson, who held that role for the Twins under both Molitor and Baldelli before leaving to become bench coach of the Miami Marlins in 2020, was also one of the finalists. Former Seattle Mariners manager Scott Servais and current Chicago Cubs bench coach Ryan Flaherty reportedly were in the mix, too.
The Twins are one of nine MLB teams who have changed managers this year.
Shelton was named manager of the Pirates in November 2019 as part of a franchise-wide reset by owner Bob Nutting. It was his first major league managing job after serving as a coach in various capacities in Tampa Bay, Toronto and Minnesota, and he went 306-440 in his five-plus seasons with Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh won less than 40% of its games in Shelton’s first three seasons before taking a step forward in 2023 when it won 76 games. Paul Skenes‘ arrival in 2024 gave the franchise another jolt, and the Pirates were in playoff contention until an August swoon. In 2025, the Pirates’ offense under Shelton languished near the bottom of the NL.
The Twins, who were expected to contend for the AL Central title this season, faltered in June and became active at the trade deadline, sending away 10 players while cutting $26 million from the payroll. The team went 23-43 after the All-Star break to finish fourth in the division with a 70-92 mark.
It was the fourth-worst record in the major leagues and their worst mark since 2016.
Attendance swooned at Target Field this season, with the Twins finishing with an 81-home game total of a little more than 1.7 million tickets sold, their lowest number in a non-pandemic season since 2000, when they played at the Metrodome and finished 69-93.
Fans mostly have directed their disdain toward ownership, with deep frustration over cost cutting that came after the 2023 breakthrough Baldelli led with the end of a record 18-game postseason losing streak and the club’s first win of a playoff series in 21 years.
Executive chair Joe Pohlad and his family members put the franchise up for sale in 2024, but decided in August to keep control and bring on two new investment groups for an infusion of cash to help pay down debt.
The New York Post first reported news on Shelton’s hiring by the Twins.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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Jesse Rogers
LOS ANGELES — Blue Jays designated hitter George Springer won’t start Game 5 of the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday, but Toronto manager John Schneider indicated Springer could be available off the bench.
Springer, who also missed Game 4 after leaving Game 3 early with right side discomfort, did some hitting in the batting cage and some running Wednesday.
“George is feeling better,” Schneider said Wednesday afternoon. “I think better than he expected to feel, better than we expected him to feel, which is saying a lot.”
Bo Bichette will serve as the team’s DH in place of Springer in Game 5 while Isiah Kiner-Falefa will start at second base.
The 36-year-old Springer left Monday’s contest after taking an awkward swing in the seventh inning of the Dodgers’ eventual 18-inning victory. He is 3-for-11 with two runs scored in the World Series, which is tied 2-2.
He has been a key member of the Blue Jays’ postseason run but is likely to watch at least one more game before the Series takes a day off Thursday. With the extra time to heal, it means Springer could be ready for Friday’s Game 6 in Toronto.
“He’s had an unbelievable year, and I think that he has done a phenomenal job of kind of setting the tone for us, not just at the plate but in the clubhouse and keeping tabs on guys,” Schneider said. “It’s been fun to watch him. It’s been really fun after a tough year last year for him and us.”
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