LOS ANGELES -- Shohei Ohtani has homered off Jacob Misiorowski during his career, and the Miz has returned the favor by sending Sho back to the dugout after a strikeout.
When those two powerhouses square off again on Saturday afternoon at Dodger Stadium, there won’t be any secrets. Ohtani will be looking to swing. Misiorowski will come right at him.
“He knows what I’m going to do. I’m going to throw a heater,” said Misiorowski, who’s armed with arguably the best heater in baseball right now. “He’s going to hit it or he’s not going to hit it. We’re going to see.
“You know, I’m going to go out there and do my thing. I’m not going to change it for the dude that’s in the box. That’s what I do against everyone: ‘I’m going to throw a heater. Good luck. Here it is.’”
That strategy has worked well so far this season. Going into his 23rd start of 2026, Misiorowski is MLB’s leader in ERA (1.76), strikeouts (204), WHIP (0.74) and opponents’ average (.147), making him the frontrunner in a field of National League Cy Young Award contenders that also includes the Braves’ Chris Sale, the Reds’ Chase Burns, the Phillies’ Cristopher Sánchez and the Dodgers’ Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
It will be his second career start against the Dodgers (Misiorowski outdueled Clayton Kershaw at American Family Field last July), and Misiorowski’s second career appearance at Dodger Stadium, having delivered five quality innings in relief with nine strikeouts in Game 3 of last year’s NL Championship Series. That outing came amid a series of electric postseason relief appearances after Misiorowski slumped to the end of the regular season as a starter.
Looking back, all of Misiorowski's success this season started there.
“That was the real turning point last year,” Misiorowski said. “I went through the struggles at the end of the year and really battled through it. Then the postseason rolled around, I had the success, and kind of brought it into this year. I’m still on that momentum, I would say.”