Ohtani won't DH Wednesday, will only pitch vs. Mets

Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani won't be in the starting lineup at designated hitter and will only serve as his team's starting pitcher during Wednesday's game against the New York Mets.

Dalton Rushing will DH and hit seventh, while Kyle Tucker is being moved up into Ohtani's usual leadoff spot.

Mets pitcher David Peterson hit Ohtani in the shoulder during Monday's game. Although the four-time MVP appeared to be in pain after being hit by the pitch, he remained in the contest and was back in the lineup at DH on Tuesday. However, manager Dave Roberts said Wednesday that Ohtani was still feeling some shoulder soreness, which played into the lineup decision, according to David Vassegh of AM 570 Los Angeles.

"If it weren't for the hit-by-pitch, he would have been DHing and pitching tonight," Roberts said, according to Sonja Chen of MLB.com.

The skipper added that Ohtani only pitching "gives him the best chance to stay loose during the outing," per Jack Harris of the California Post.

The game will mark the first time Ohtani starts as a pitcher without hitting since May 28, 2021, when he was with the Los Angeles Angels. He took the loss in that outing, allowing three runs while striking out five and walking four over six innings.

Ohtani is off to another stellar start in 2026 on both sides of the ball. As a hitter, he's slashing .254/.402/.508 with five homers and 10 RBIs over 82 plate appearances. On the mound, he enters Wednesday having not allowed an earned run over 12 innings.

The 31-year-old owns both the longest active on-base streak (48 games) as a hitter and the longest active streak without allowing an earned run (28 2/3 innings) as a pitcher, with both runs dating back to last year. His on-base streak will remain active as long as he doesn't take a plate appearance in Wednesday's game.