GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Underneath a sizzling Arizona sun, Shohei Ohtani rivaled the dry desert conditions with some heat of his own on the mound.
Ohtani topped out at 99.9 mph with four punchouts in his 4 1/3 scoreless innings on 61 pitches (34 strikes), receiving a standing ovation when he exited Wednesday's eventual 5-1 win over the Giants at Camelback Ranch. His command was a little off at times, as he issued two walks and hit a batter, but he sure didn't look like a pitcher who was starting his first game since Game 7 of the World Series.
“I was pretty happy with the pitch count today," Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton. "In terms of the next outing, I do want to be better at executing in two-strike counts. I just didn’t finish off hitters as much as I wanted to.”
In his first spring start, Ohtani only served as a pitcher rather than carry out his full two-way duties on an afternoon where the temperature hit triple digits and the game was called after eight innings due to the heat. During the regular season -- and perhaps when he starts one of next week's Freeway Series games -- he's expected to hit and pitch, as he's accustomed to.
"He wants to get re-acclimated into pitching, focus on pitching," manager Dave Roberts said, "and he’s already taken enough at-bats."
Ohtani played in only one Cactus League game before departing Dodgers camp to join Samurai Japan for the World Baseball Classic. He was exclusively a hitter during the tournament, going 6-for-13 (.462) with three homers and seven RBIs in four games before Japan was eliminated by eventual champion Venezuela in the quarterfinal.
Because Ohtani did not pitch in the Classic, it was unclear how much he would be able to build up his arm. He threw bullpen sessions and a four-inning simulated game while he was away, which helped prepare him to make a deep outing in his first time on a Cactus League mound since 2023.
“It actually didn’t feel like it was my first Spring Training outing," Ohtani said. "I do see this as more of an extension of a live BP situation. So it didn't feel too bad going into this game.”
For much of the spring, the Dodgers were operating under the assumption that Ohtani would only be stretched out to two or three innings to open the regular season. But due to Japan's early elimination, he can make two spring starts before pitching in a game that counts.
That puts him considerably ahead of where he was when he made his Dodgers pitching debut last year, completing his rehab from a second major elbow surgery in games at the big league level. He essentially started from scratch and built up an inning at a time back then. This year, he could be close to fully stretched out in his first regular-season start.
"Certainly well beyond where we were last year to start," Roberts said. "We'll see once he pitches in the Freeway Series, if it's five innings or he's gonna touch the sixth, I don't know. With what I saw today, with what we saw, he's in a really good spot."
Ohtani being more built-up could impact the Dodgers' Opening Day roster plans. If he were only usable as a multi-inning opener to start, then the team may have needed multiple length options in the bullpen to cover him, as well as the other starters who are still acclimating to their usual workload. Instead, the Dodgers may be able to run a more traditional five-man rotation to open the season and add a sixth starter when the schedule calls for it.
For Ohtani, being able to start the season with a regular starter's workload, more or less, could set him up for one of his better Major League pitching seasons. He has only qualified for the ERA title once, when he set career highs with 166 innings and 28 starts in 2022. It could also make his aspiration of winning a Cy Young Award more realistic.
The Dodgers' overarching goal this year is to pull off a three-peat. And while Ohtani would like to do great things individually, his top priority is doing great things as a team.
"What I think is more important," Ohtani said, "is to just be flexible, adjustable, and making sure that we’re having the goal in mind rather than the starts that we need to make.”