JUMP TO:
The Los Angeles Dodgers and the Philadelphia Phillies will duke it out in the 2025 National League Division Series. It is expected to be a battle between NL favorites, and it starts with the pitching matchup in the first game.
Los Angeles will start superstar Shohei Ohtani. He is better known for his dominance at the plate and has only pitched sparingly recently due to injuries. Ohtani pitched in 14 games during the 2025 season and finished with a 1-1 record and a 2.87 ERA. He struck out 62 batters and allowed 15 earned runs in 47 innings of work.
One thing to watch will be how long Los Angeles lets Ohtani pitch. Of his 14 appearances, he pitched more than four innings only three times. His last outing of the regular season was his longest. Ohtani threw six scoreless innings against the Arizona Diamondbacks and struck out eight while allowing five hits. The Dodgers went on to lose the game 5-4.
The Sporting News is tracking Ohtani’s live stats in Game 1 of the NLDS against the Phillies.
STREAM: Watch Dodgers vs. Phillies Game 1 live with DirecTV
Dodgers vs. Phillies score
MLB PLAYOFFS HQ: Live MLB scores | Full MLB schedule | Updated MLB bracket
Shohei Ohtani stats today
Pitching
- Pitches: 89
- Balls: 29
- Strikes: 60
- Hits: 3
- Walks: 2 (1 HBP)
- Strikeouts: 9
- Runs: 3
- Earned Runs: 3
- Innings: 6.0
Hitting
- At-bats: 4
- Hits: 0
- Home runs: 0
- Walks: 0
- Strikeouts: 4
This section will be updated following each inning.
Shohei Ohtani live updates, highlights from Dodgers vs. Phillies NLDS Game 1
All times ET.
Seventh Inning
8:46 p.m. — Ohtani comes to the plate for the fourth time in the game. He won’t face Sanchez, who had been pulled, but will still have a lefty-lefty matchup against Matt Strahm. There are runners on first and second and two outs. He took a ball, but then fouled off back-to-back pitches. He then took a 93-mph fastball down the middle for his fourth strikeout at the plate of the night.
Ohtani was indeed replaced by Tyler Glasnow in the bottom of the seventh inning. Los Angeles scored three runs in the top of the seventh to take the lead, though, so Ohtani is currently in line for the win.
Sixth Inning
8:34 p.m. — Kike Hernandez delivered a two-RBI double in the top of the sixth, to lessen the deficit to only one run. Ohtani stayed in the game and started off the inning, striking out Harper. Bohm wasted no time flying out to right on the first pitch that he saw. Ohtani had Marsh 0-2, but the Phillies hitter worked the count back to 3-2 before striking out to end the inning. This could be the final inning on the mound for Ohtani, but he will hit in the top of the seventh.
Fifth Inning
8:10 p.m. — Ohtani takes the mound in the fifth and starts off facing Kepler. The L.A. ace continues his dominance since the third inning and gets the Philadelphia outfielder to strike out. Ohtani had Bader 0-2, but then a sweeper barely clipped him on the arm; however, it still counts as a hit by pitch.
Stott lines a pitch to center field for a single. Turner lined a ball right to Mookie Betts at shortstop for the second out of the inning. Schwarber was in a 0-2 count before battling back to 3-2. Ohtani struck him out with a curveball to end the inning. The bullpen is up, so we will see if the starter comes back out for the Dodgers.
8:01 p.m. — Ohtani’s third plate appearance doesn’t go much better than his first two. He took a ball low, but then swing through a slider and a changeup. Ohtani then watched a 97-mph sinker down the middle for the third strike, and his third strikeout of the night at the plate.
Fourth Inning
7:50 p.m. — Ohtani is back out for his fourth inning of work. He got Bohm to ground out to short on five pitches. Brandon Marsh then struck out looking on a well-placed curveball. Realmuto then grounded out to third. After an explosive third inning, Ohtani has had back-to-back three-up and three-down innings.
Third Inning
7:37 p.m. — Philadelphia’s lineup turns over, and Ohtani gets Turner to ground out to third on four pitches for the first out of the bottom of the inning. He then got Schwarber to strike out swinging and ended the inning by punching out Harper. Ohtani needed a bounce-back inning, and he got it.
7:25 p.m. — Ohtani came to the plate for the second time in the game. He watched a pitch down the middle for strike one. Ohtani watched a ball out of the zone and then swung through a sinker. He took two more balls and then fouled off a pitch before watching a sinker in the lower part of the zone for a strikeout.
Second Inning — Phillies score 3 runs, lead 3-0
7:19 p.m. — Ohtani starts the second inning by walking Alec Bohm on six pitches. Brandon Marsh then singled the fifth pitch he saw up the middle to put runners on first and second with no outs. Catcher J.T. Realmuto sent a 1-0 count into right-center for a triple. It plated two runs and was helped out by Teoscar Hernandez, either taking a bad route or just giving up on the ball.
TWO-RUN TRIPLE FOR J.T. REALMUTO!
THE @PHILLIES STRIKE FIRST! #NLDS pic.twitter.com/xXmCURKk5r
— MLB (@MLB) October 4, 2025
Still with no outs in the inning, Ohtani faced Max Kepler with Realmuto on third. Kepler grounded out to third, but Realmuto wasn’t able to score. Harrison Bader had a loud sac fly deep to left field that was caught, but it allowed Realmuto to easily score. Ohtani was able to stop the bleeding by striking out Bryson Stott.
Harrison Bader brings him home! #NLDS pic.twitter.com/OBO3LEbxDH
— MLB (@MLB) October 4, 2025
First Inning
6:54 p.m. — Ohtani began his outing by facing Trea Turner with an 84 mph slider that the Phillies batter swung through. Turner was able to get it to a 2-2 count before swinging through a sweeper for the first out of the game.
Shohei Ohtani strikes out the first batter he faces in his first career #Postseason start! pic.twitter.com/aB7pTy4UaI
— MLB (@MLB) October 4, 2025
Schwarber also saw four pitches before he launched a ball to right field. He didn’t quite get all of it as it died at the wall. Bryce Harper then hit a groundout to Ohtani on the second pitch he saw for the third out of the inning.
Ohtani starts off his first postseason start with a 1-2-3 inning! pic.twitter.com/h1CNBWK7mb
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) October 4, 2025
6:42 p.m. — Ohtani is pulling double duty tonight. In his first at-bat, he saw three pitches low and inside and swung at all three of them for a quick strikeout. Cristopher Sanchez hit him with a sinker and two changeups for the first out of the game.
Pre-game
6:37 p.m. — Ahead of the game, manager Dave Roberts said that the hope is that Ohtani can pitch through six and into the seventh.
6:10 p.m. — It was expected to be loud when Ohtani faces the Phillies in Citizens Bank Park, but the loyal crowd is letting him hear it early as he walks to the bullpen to get ready for his start.
Phillies fans drown out the hype video in boos as Ohtani walks to the bullpen. pic.twitter.com/efgKZFj2hh
— Dan Gelston (@APgelston) October 4, 2025
5:45 p.m. — Ohtani arrives for Game 1 and his first postseason start on the mound this season.
Shohei Ohtani arriving for his start in Game 1 against the Phillies 👀 pic.twitter.com/plBnnbHsVq
— MLB (@MLB) October 4, 2025
MORE SHOHEI OHTANI NEWS:
Is Shohei Ohtani pitching tonight?
Shohei Ohtani was named the Dodgers’ starting pitcher for NLDS Game 1 against the Phillies. He will face Philadelphia ace Christopher Sanchez, who went 13-5 this season with a 2.50 ERA.
It’s Ohtani’s first-ever postseason pitching appearance.
Where to watch Dodgers vs. Phillies
Dodgers vs. Phillies start time
- Date: Saturday, October 4
- Time: 6:38 p.m. ET
Game 1 of the 2025 NLDS between the Dodgers and Phillies will take place on Saturday, October 4. First pitch is set for 6:38 p.m. ET from Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
What channel is Dodgers vs. Phillies on today?
- TV Channel: TBS, truTV
- Live stream: HBO Max, DirecTV
The Dodgers and Phillies will play their first game of the 2025 NLDS on TBS and truTV. The game will be streamed on HBO Max.
