Rest day for Shohei Ohtani in Dodgers finale vs. Giants
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MAY 10: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers checks an iPad in the dugout during the first inning against the Atlanta Braves at Dodger Stadium on May 10, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images) | Getty Images For the first time of 2026, the Dodgers on Thursday won’t have Shohei Ohtani starting for them in any capacity, a planned rest day during the final game against the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium. The decision to have Ohtani not hit on either Wednesday or Thursday came before Tuesday’s game , when Ohtani hit his first home run in 16 days .
He then followed that up with seven scoreless innings on the mound on Wednesday , lowering his MLB-leading ERA to a scant 0. 82. “It might be a good thing to take a little bit of a load off his plate offensively,” manager Dave Roberts said on Tuesday.
That means no start for Ohtani on Thursday, though Roberts did say Ohtani would be available to pinch-hit later in the game if needed. Roberts also had advice for Ohtani’s first real rest day of the season, which is directly in the middle of a stretch of 13 game days in a row for the Dodgers. “I would say show up late, start the day much later, build up some R and R,” Roberts said.
“But as the game goes on, start reading the scoreboard and seeing if the situation potentially could arise, to then prepare for that spot. ” Teoscar Hernández had his second multi-hit game of the series on Wednesday night as he filled in at designated hitter while Ohtani was focusing only on pitching. Dalton Rushing has the other three non-Ohtani starts at DH this season, collecting a home run and double in his 11 at-bats, with four RBI.
Throw in Alex Call’s pinch-hit double on May 5 in Houston, the non-Ohtani designated hitters are hitting . 313/. 313/.