Shohei Ohtani will be rested after today's two-way start and will not be in the starting lineup tomorrow.

The day after completing a full two-way assignment, Shohei Ohtani will not be in the starting lineup for tomorrow's series finale against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field. For today's game, Ohtani is serving as both pitcher and hitter for the third consecutive start. The team's approach is to let him know he will have a rest day the following day, allowing him to give full effort on both sides of the ball.

“I think knowing he can rest tomorrow allows him to be more mentally relaxed for tonight’s game,” manager Dave Roberts said before today’s game. “So letting him know he can go all out without needing to conserve energy for tomorrow has its value.”

The Los Angeles Dodgers have been careful about managing Shohei Ohtani’s two-way workload since the start of the season, and one key reason for his rest tomorrow is related to the schedule. With a stretch of 10 consecutive games, Roberts believes giving Ohtani extra recovery time is beneficial.

Although there was a period this season when Ohtani was limited to one role when starting on the mound, based on communication with the player and training staff, the Dodgers now prefer to prioritize a full recovery day after he pitches. The team usually tries to schedule his starts before a day off, but the schedule does not always allow for that ideal arrangement.

“Today will be very demanding for him because he’s both hitting and pitching,” Roberts said. “But by tomorrow, if we can manage the overall soreness and fatigue, it will give him plenty of energy to handle the next few days.”

Like most great players, Shohei Ohtani wants to be in the starting lineup every day. Roberts has learned to be proactive in finding him breathing room, and this approach seems to be working for everyone. After a prolonged slow start at the plate, Ohtani received a rare two-day reset as a hitter on May 13–14. Since then, through today’s game, he has 27 hits in 65 at-bats, batting .415 with a 1.229 OPS.

“Taking his name out of the lineup never feels good,” Roberts said. “But that two-day rest really helped him a lot.”