“All I wanted was a base hit” - Shohei Ohtani opens up on Dodgers’ narrow victory against Tigers as team ends four-game losing streak

Shohei Ohtani came in with the clutch for his team against the Detroit Tigers. In the ninth inning, the Dodgers and the Tigers were deadlocked at 3-3. However, Ohtani redeemed the victory with a ground-rule double that scored second baseman Chris Taylor, against left-hander Tyler Holton.

The match seemed to be slipping from the Dodgers when Tigers ace Tarik Skubal dominated his opponents in the early game. However, things turned around after Freddie Freeman's solo home run. This also made Freeman the first left-hander to have homered against Skubal this season.

Ohtani's go-ahead double had the team take the lead and get the victory. He even talked about the shot in his interview right after the game.

"You know, all I wanted was a base hit, just put the ball in play, and I was really hoping that the ball would get through, and it did," Ohtani responded to what he felt about the phenomenal shot.

"You know, obviously we were on a losing streak, so it was really important for us to get a W today, and I think we played really good, and I'm glad it turned out well for us," Ohtani added.

Shohei Ohtani was going hitless in the first four at-bats; however, he came back with a bang and led his team to a victory after four straight losses.

Dave Roberts talks about Shohei Ohtani's ground-rule double shot

Amidst a tense pitching duel, Detroit Tigers' manager, AJ Hinch, made a critical decision in the late innings. He opted to keep Tyler Holton to pitch the red-hot Dodgers hitter Shohei Ohtani with runners on base, despite Ohtani's intimidating record against the left-handers.

Hinch's decision stemmed from the looming presence of Will Smith, who doesn't have a good record with left-handed pitchers. So, Holton, who had not allowed a run in 7.2 innings prior, delivered a 1-0 sinker that Shohei Ohtani connected with for a line drive.

This was a great play by Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, who explained the shot taken by Ohtani in an interview later.

"I think that he wants to be the guy,” Roberts said. “I think that certain times, you want to be the guy and they don’t want him to beat them. So there’s an expansion of the strike zone, and he’s just got to continue to be disciplined in the strike zone. And that’s the challenge for a guy who’s a really aggressive swinger."

Roberts explained that he got the pitch in his zone, and he utilized it beautifully to his own strength. This was a necessary victory for the Los Angeles Dodgers.