Mets will "walk Shohei Ohtani to face Mookie Betts" like Guardians' recent approach with Juan Soto & Aaron Judge, says HOFer John Smoltz
On Thursday, sportscaster Dan Patrik and former Atlanta Braves pitcher John Smoltz talked about Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and the LA Dodgers' ongoing NLCS clash against the New York Mets. After three games, the Dodgers lead the series 2-1.
Smoltz was in the big leagues for 21 seasons and played for the Atlanta Braves, Boston Red Sox and St. Louis Cardinals. He had a highly decorated career as he earned eight All-Star caps, won an NL Cy Young award, a World Series title, an NLCS MVP and a Roberto Clemente award, among other honors. He is also in the Braves Hall of Fame, and his No. 29 jersey was retired by the organization in 2012.
In the ALCS between the New York Yankees and the Cleveland Guardians, Guardians pitchers preferred to walk Juan Soto to face Aaron Judge. On Thursday's edition of the "Dan Patrick Show," Smoltz talked about how he thinks the Mets may prefer to do the same with Dodgers' leadoff hitter Shohei Ohtani and face the second hitter in the order, Mookie Betts, instead.
"I believe, at some point in this series, much like what we saw in the Yankees [game], they walked Soto to pitch to Judge and loaded the bases," Smoltz said (timestamp 1:24). "That eventually is going to happen with Ohtani."
"They're going to walk Ohtani to pitch to Betts. Well, good luck, that's why the Dodgers' top four are pretty darn good. It's gonna happen, it's just right now, you don't want people on base when you're facing him."
Shohei Ohtani hits three-run homer as Dodgers take the lead in the NLCS
The LA Dodgers registered a resounding 8-0 victory over the New York Mets in the third game of the NLCS at Citi Field on Wednesday. It gave them the lead in the series again after the Mets brought it back to level terms in Game 2.
Ohtani continued his remarkable hitting record with runners in scoring positions, as he sent the baseball to the second deck in the top of the eighth inning for a three-run home run. It brought the score up to 7-0 and they cruised to a comfortable victory.
Apart from Ohtani, Kike Hernandez and Max Muncy also hit home runs. Along with the offense, starting pitcher Walker Buehler and the bullpen also looked great on the mound as they shut out the hosts.
Ohtani and the Dodgers will take on the Mets again on Thursday. Their fans will be hoping for a repeat of the team's performance in Game 2, as another win will take them to the cusp of qualification for the World Series.