After watching him clobber two home runs in Game 1 and deliver an RBI single earlier in Game 2, the Cincinnati Reds were done pitching to Shohei Ohtani. So, when the reigning National League MVP stepped to the plate in the bottom of the seventh inning with a runner on second base and one out on Wednesday night, the Reds opted to intentionally walk him.
Can you blame them?
But the decision didn't pay off, as the next batter, Mookie Betts, hit an RBI double to extend the Dodgers' lead to 8-2. And even though Betts helped orchestrate the decision's backfire, he told reporters after the game that he doesn't blame teams for not wanting to pitch to Ohtani.
Mookie Betts doesn't blame teams for walking Shohei Ohtani to face him instead:
— Dodgers Nation (@DodgersNation) October 2, 2025
"I wouldn't let Shohei swing either, I expect the Phillies to do it, I expect the rest of the postseason for it to happen. I just got to be ready to do my thing." pic.twitter.com/70jNxXyFNT
"Nothing," Betts said when asked what goes through his mind when he's intentionally walked. "I wouldn't let Shohei swing either. I mean, I understand. I expect the Phillies to do it. I expect [it to happen] for the rest of the postseason. I undertstand. I understand Shohei. I understand the situation of the game. And so I just gotta be ready to do my thing."
And ready he was, as Betts' RBI double proved to be valuable insurance when the Reds would bring the tying run to the plate with the bases loaded in the top of the eighth inning, a jam the Dodgers bullpen navigated out of.
And as for intentionally walking Ohtani to pitch to Betts, it may be a short-lived strategy with the latter heating up at the dish. Betts collected six hits and three RBI in the Dodgers' sweep of the Reds.
Game 1 of the National League Division Series against the Phillies begins on Saturday.
More MLB on Sports Illustrated
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Mookie Betts Perfectly Understands Opposing Teams' Shohei Ohtani Strategy.
