Ohtani hits triple digits 11 times starting in Glasnow's place

BALTIMORE -- Shohei Ohtani worked 3 2/3 scoreless innings after he was unexpectedly named the Dodgers' starting pitcher in their 2-1 series-opening loss against the Orioles on Friday night.

And throughout his outing -- as he has much of this season -- he carried some of the best velocity of his career.

Ohtani touched triple digits a career-best 11 times. That included six four-seamers thrown during the fourth inning as he struck out Colton Cowser and Emmanuel Rivera after Ryan Mountcastle led off with a double and reached third on a wild pitch. Lefty reliever Anthony Banda got Samuel Basallo to ground out to keep the O’s scoreless through four.

Ohtani topped out at 101.5 mph -- fractions off the career-best 101.7 mph he posted in a start on June 28 at the Royals -- as he worked in place of Tyler Glasnow, who was scratched due to back tightness.

Ohtani had been scheduled to start Wednesday but was scratched due to a chest cold, his start originally pushed to Monday. That all changed three hours before first pitch at Camden Yards, where he made his 12th start as a Dodger and his first since stretching out to five innings for the first time on Aug. 27.

“Shohei was up to it. He feels good physically and wants the ball tonight,” manager Dave Roberts explained pregame. “He says he feels good, and talking with the trainers, everyone that needs to know signed off on it. And most importantly, Shohei.”

Ohtani, 31, lowered his ERA to 3.75 this year, his first as a pitcher since signing with the Dodgers. The front-runner for the NL MVP Award also entered Friday hitting .279 with 46 home runs and 87 RBIs in 137 games as a designated hitter.

Ohtani’s return to the mound -- which began in mid-June -- has been carefully managed, increasing his innings load gradually from one frame in his first two starts to 17 1/3 innings in his four August outings, each coming seven days apart.

“He is learning, as most people are, that he’s capable of making adjustments,” Roberts said. “And I think routine is great, but I also think that the desire, the will to react, to read and react, to adjust, that’s still possible, too. And so Shohei, to his credit, wants to pick us up. And I really admire him for that.”

Roberts added that Ohtani would likely not complete five innings again on Friday, given his recent recovery from illness, though it depended on his efficiency. He finished his 3 2/3 frames on 70 pitches, 44 thrown for strikes.

Glasnow tied a season high with seven innings pitched in his last start, Saturday against the D-backs. Roberts said Glasnow was still in line to pitch until back tightness that began on Thursday night continued into Friday.

“The hope is that we push him back a few days and he can make a start early next week,” Roberts said.

Glasnow has won just one of his 14 starts this year, but he has pitched well since returning from a bout of right shoulder inflammation on July 9, posting a 3.02 ERA with 58 strikeouts in 50 2/3 innings spanning nine starts.