Brewers manager Pat Murphy didn’t take the Shohei Ohtani-speculation bait.
asserted
Murphy → take → bait
But, when asked about Ohtani’s uncertain status coming out of Game 2 of the National League Championship Series this week, outfielder Garrett Mitchell did.
asserted
Mitchell → ask → Series
“I’d be shocked,” Mitchell said on Tuesday, when asked about the possibility of Ohtani not being in the Dodgers’ lineup for a critical Game 3 on Wednesday.
asserted
Ohtani → shock → Wednesday
“He’s the greatest player in the game, arguably going down as the best player ever.
asserted
He → ’ → player
One day you can be on top of the world, and on the next you are hitting the lowest of lows …
asserted
you → hit → lows
But I know that whether he’s feeling good or he’s not feeling good, he’s always going to be someone that you have to game-plan for.
asserted
you → know → that
“You never know,” Mitchell added.
asserted
Mitchell → know → ?
“It takes one swing to come back.”
asserted
It → take → swing
As it turned out, Ohtani was granted the chance for a big swing on Wednesday.
asserted
Ohtani → turn → Wednesday
Despite his woeful performance so far this postseason, and his ongoing struggles with right arm and left knee injuries, Ohtani was kept in the Dodgers’ lineup for Game 3 of the NLCS.
asserted
Ohtani → keep → NLCS
He was, as manager Dave Roberts relayed while announcing the decision on Tuesday, “convicted” and “adamant” in his ability to find something at the plate, and look more like the four-time MVP that has spearheaded the Dodgers’ offense during their run to back-to-back World Series titles the last two years.
“
asserted
that → relay → titles
‘I want to be in there.
asserted
I → want → ?
I know I can help the team.
asserted
I → know → team
I’m close,’” Ohtani told Roberts and top front-office executives Andrew Friedman and Brandon Gomes during a meeting on Tuesday, as Roberts later recounted.
asserted
Roberts → ’m → Tuesday
“That,” Roberts added, “is all I need to hear.”
asserted
I → add → ?
Ohtani’s chances of following through on such optimism, of course, still seemed dubious.
asserted
chances → follow → course
He entered Wednesday batting just 3-for-20 with no extra-base hits or RBIs this postseason.
asserted
He → enter → hits
He hadn’t launched a home run since Aug. 18, mired in the longest single-season long-ball drought of his MLB career.
asserted
He → launch → career
He was coming off a particularly poor performance in Game 2, going 0-for-4 with two strikeouts and several awkward swings in a 7-4 loss that put the Dodgers in a 2-0 series hole.
asserted
that → come → hole
Still, the Brewers remained wary of the 32-year-old’s capabilities.
asserted
Brewers → remain → capabilities
They couldn’t help but remember last year’s NLCS, when Ohtani entered Game 4 in a 3-for-29 slump — then delivered perhaps the greatest individual performance in baseball history, hitting three home runs and striking out 10 batters to complete a pennant-clinching sweep.
asserted
Ohtani → help → sweep
“There’s proof of that even last year,” Mitchell noted.
asserted
Mitchell → ’ → that
“Probably didn’t have the greatest series to start, but that Game 4, it just takes one day.”
asserted
it → have → day
“You can’t forget that,” Murphy added.
asserted
Murphy → forget → that
“Do you know how tough it is to execute what he did?”
asserted
he → know → what
This version of Ohtani, of course, looks nothing like last year’s.
asserted
version → look → year
He isn’t pitching.
asserted
He → pitch → ?
He isn’t slugging.
asserted
He → slug → ?
Outside of a few slap singles and a couple walks, he has hardly even posed a threat to reach base.
asserted
he → pose → base
Has that changed the way the Brewers have attacked him in this NLCS rematch, Murphy was asked:
“You still have to go at him,” he said, coyly.
asserted
he → change → him
“You have to go at everybody.”
asserted
You → have → everybody
As for whether Murphy would have been surprised to see Ohtani benched for Game 3?
asserted
Ohtani → see → Game
“That’s out of my hands,” he said.
asserted
he → ’ → hands
Nothing in this game surprises me, to tell you the truth.
asserted
Nothing → surprise → truth
Right when you think you know something, be careful; you might not.”
uncertain
you → think → something
With their season hanging in the balance, the Dodgers are hoping that will prove true with their slumping superstar slugger.
asserted
that → hang → slugger
The Aporia
