David Peterson makes Shohei Ohtani ‘look human' as Mets keep Dodgers stars in check
Shohei Ohtani pounded the Mets during last year's NLCS.
So did Mookie Betts.
That star-powered pair delivered run-scoring hit after run-scoring hit last October as their Los Angeles Dodgers eliminated the Mets in six games to advance to the World Series. They were particularly potent during the series' three games at Citi Field.
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But this weekend's rematch in Queens couldn't be going more differently.
Through the first two games of the three-game set, Ohtani and Betts are a combined 2-for-18 with six strikeouts and two walks.
Add in the 0-for-7 from Freddie Freeman — the Dodgers' other middle-of-the-order former MVP — and Los Angeles' big three is 2-for-25 with 10 strikeouts, four walks and no extra-base hits or RBI.
Saturday night's 5-2 win by the Mets was particularly rough for Ohtani, who went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts, all against left-handed starter David Peterson.
'I think he made him look human,' Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said of Peterson.
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Peterson threw 18 pitches to the lefty-swinging Ohtani in those four at-bats and did not offer him a single four-seam fastball.
Instead, Peterson kept Ohtani off-balance with sinkers and off-speed pitches. He finished all three of the swinging strikeouts with sliders.
'It's just another hitter,' Peterson said. 'It's one of nine in their lineup. That's how I look at everybody. Obviously, he's a great player and he's done what he's done in this game. They have a lot of great hitters over there.'
Ohtani represented the tying run when he came up with one out in the eighth. Mets closer Edwin Diaz was warmed up, but Mendoza stuck with Peterson, who struck Ohtani out on his 99th and final pitch of the night.
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'I was going through potential scenarios knowing that Diaz was ready to go,' Mendoza said. 'The idea was to at least get him through Ohtani because of the previous at-bat and the way he was taking swings off of him.'
It was the first three-strikeout game in over a month for Ohtani, the reigning National League MVP who entered Saturday hitting .302 with 17 home runs.
Peterson limited the Dodgers to two runs with seven strikeouts over 7.2 innings, which matched a career high.
'Big time performance there,' Mendoza said. 'Not only on Ohtani, but overall.'
Ohtani went 1-for-5 with a walk in Friday night's opener, which the Dodgers won, 7-5, in 13 innings.
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Betts went 0-for-5 in Friday's win, then went for 1-for-4 on Saturday. He, too, had a chance to tie the game in the eighth, but Diaz struck him out looking with a 97-mph fastball to end the inning.
Freeman, meanwhile, followed Friday's three-strikeout performance with an 0-for-4 effort on Saturday, during which he also struck out against Diaz.
It's a far cry from last year's NLCS, when Ohtani hit .364 with two home runs, six RBI, nine walks and a 1.185 OPS against the Mets. He was 4-for-11 — including both homers — at Citi Field.
Betts hit .346 with two home runs, nine RBI and a 1.182 OPS during the NLCS. He was 6-for-16 in the three games in Queens and also hit both of his homers there.
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Freeman was 3-for-18 in that playoff series, but he sat out of two of the games with a sprained right ankle that he suffered toward the end of the regular season.
The lefty-swinging Freeman entered Saturday with a .361 average, good for second among MLB hitters, behind only Judge.
All three of this weekend's Mets-Dodgers games are nationally televised in a nod to the series' immense star power.
The Mets' big three of Soto, Francisco Lindor and Pete Alonso went a combined 0-for-12 in Friday's loss, but Soto broke out on Saturday, going 2-for-5 with a two-run double in the win.
'Our pitchers are great,' Soto said. 'They've been doing a really good job. I trust them. I know those guys over there, they're really good, but we trust the guys we have over here.'
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