Shohei Ohtani allowed multiple earned runs for the second consecutive start Wednesday, pitching through left knee soreness and a bleeding blister on his right middle finger in a 5-4 Los Angeles Dodgers victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.
Ohtani (7-2) cruised through four scoreless innings before surrendering four runs and five hits in a 26-pitch fifth inning. He recovered to retire the side in order in the sixth, finishing with the win as the Dodgers completed a sweep of Tampa Bay.
"It's just really that inning, that fifth inning, that I wasn't really too pleased," said Ohtani through an interpreter. "But aside from that the stuff was good and I felt pretty good overall."
Ohtani has now allowed eight runs, seven earned, across his last two outings after giving up just seven runs, five earned, in his first 10 starts. His ERA climbed to 1.47, still second-best in the majors among pitchers with at least 50 innings.
His knee forced him to miss a start in Chicago last week and ended a four-game winning streak on the mound with a no-decision at Pittsburgh.
Dodgers catcher Dalton Rushing expressed little concern over the recent struggles.
"Obviously, we expect close to perfection out of Sho every time he goes out there. So does he," said Rushing. "But there's no reason to worry at all."
Ohtani also batted as a pinch hitter in the sixth inning, grounding out on one pitch after Freddie Freeman's two-run homer had given Los Angeles the lead. Ohtani had hit five home runs over his previous nine games entering Wednesday, batting .367 during that stretch.















