A rainy Los Angeles night couldn’t dampen the excitement at Dodger Stadium as Shohei Ohtani made his long-awaited return to the mound, dazzling fans and teammates alike in his first start of the 2026 season. The Dodgers, coming off their first loss of the year just 24 hours earlier, responded with a 4-1 victory over the Cleveland Guardians on March 31, 2026, thanks in large part to Ohtani’s two-way brilliance and some timely hitting from a lineup eager to break out of early-season slumps.
Ohtani, the four-time MVP whose two-way exploits have already rewritten baseball’s history books, showed why he’s considered by many—including his own manager—to be the best all-around player the game has ever seen. On the eve of the eighth anniversary of his Major League pitching debut, Ohtani delivered six scoreless innings, allowing just one hit—a two-out double by Rhys Hoskins in the fourth—and striking out six batters. He walked three and hit one, but his command and poise under soggy conditions were never in doubt. Of his 87 pitches, 54 were strikes, and he started 14 of the 23 batters he faced with a first-pitch strike.
“He’s just unflappable,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said after the game, marveling at Ohtani’s ability to adjust to the rain and a muddy mound. Roberts has noticed a marked improvement in Ohtani’s feel for his breaking ball compared to last season, noting, “The feel for the breaking ball is much better. I think last year he was trying to introduce a slider with maybe a little bit more depth, and just trying to get a handle on that. But now, the ability to strike it, shorten it, to make it get a little bit bigger, all the while still having 97-98 in the tank when he needs it.”
Ohtani’s arsenal was on full display. He finished off two strikeouts with his curveball—thrown 21 times in the outing—two with his splitter, and two with a sweeping slider. He even touched 99.2 mph with his fastball, reminding everyone that his stuff remains elite following his second Tommy John surgery in 2023. Ohtani’s return to full two-way status is a story in itself; he didn’t pitch in his first spring training game until just eight games before Opening Day, but he was fully stretched out and ready to go when the bell rang.
“It’s definitely exciting,” Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy said. “If he’s able to do it the whole year, it’s just a huge boost to our pitching staff, which we already feel really good about. I expect nothing short of almost a Cy Young out of him.” Ohtani, for his part, has made no secret of his desire to add a Cy Young Award to his trophy case. “It’s just good to be able to start the game, go through six under a limited pitch count even in this condition,” Ohtani said through an interpreter. “I’m going to charge it to experience.”
The Dodgers’ offense, which had struggled to produce early runs in the young season, finally broke through in the fourth inning. With two outs, Andy Pages singled home Will Smith, marking the first time Los Angeles had scored first in a game this year. It was also the club’s only run in the fourth inning through the first five games, highlighting the significance of the breakthrough against Guardians starter Tanner Bibee. Bibee, who left his Opening Day start with shoulder inflammation, was forced to work hard, throwing 74 pitches in just four innings before being lifted as a precaution.
Max Muncy provided some insurance in the sixth, blasting his first home run of the season—a solo shot that was also his 210th as a Dodger, putting him just one behind Steve Garvey for sixth in franchise history. The Dodgers weren’t done, either. In the eighth, a flurry of singles padded the lead. Teoscar Hernandez drove in Freddie Freeman, and Pages struck again, knocking in Muncy for his second RBI of the night. The Dodgers’ bats, so quiet in the early innings of games so far, came alive late, echoing a season-long trend: through their first five games, Los Angeles had scored as many runs in the final three innings as in the first six combined.
On the mound, the bullpen backed up Ohtani’s gem with more shutdown work. Alex Vesia and Jack Dreyer each tossed scoreless innings, not allowing a single hit. Closer Edwin Diaz had a bumpier ride, giving up a walk and a hit, and allowing the Guardians’ only run, but he also struck out two to seal the win.
Ohtani wasn’t just a force on the mound. At the plate, he reached base three times—walking twice while still pitching and later singling—despite a slow start to his season offensively. In 14 at-bats so far, he’s managed only three singles (.214 average), but his six walks and a hit-by-pitch have contributed to a robust .476 on-base percentage. Ohtani’s commitment to being a full-time two-way player is one of the big stories of the 2026 campaign, and his teammates and coaches are all in on the experiment. “I think he’s already proven that he’s the best player to ever play the game, the best baseball player in totality,” Roberts said. “But I think he sees himself as a baseball player yes, but when he’s pitching he sees himself solely as a pitcher, and he wants to be the best pitcher.”
Dating back to last season, Ohtani has now thrown 23 consecutive scoreless innings in regular-season play—the second-longest such streak of his career. His ability to work through adversity, whether it’s the elements, a muddy mound, or the pressure of two-way expectations, continues to awe those around him. After the game, Ohtani reflected, “Looking back at today’s outing specifically, that wasn’t necessarily the case, so that’s something I want to work on. But compared to last season, I felt more loose and easy.”
With this win, the Dodgers improved to 4-1, while the Guardians fell to 3-3. The teams are set to meet again in Los Angeles on April 1, 2026, with Yoshinobu Yamamoto expected to start for the Dodgers and Gavin Williams for Cleveland. After that, the Dodgers will hit the road for a series against the Washington Nationals.
As the Dodgers look to build on their strong start, Ohtani’s two-way magic and a resurgent offense give the Boys in Blue plenty of reasons for optimism. Fans will be watching closely as the next chapter of Ohtani’s remarkable journey unfolds under the bright lights of Dodger Stadium.