Dave Roberts Confirms the Obvious: Shohei Ohtani Stays in the Dodgers Lineup

Dave Roberts had to actually come out and announce that Shohei Ohtani is staying in the Los Angeles Dodgers' starting lineup.

This is the baseball equivalent of a restaurant manager holding a press conference to confirm they will continue serving food. When you have a unicorn who hits baseballs into orbit, you write his name in pen, laminate the lineup card, and lock it in a safe.

"Shohei Ohtani is staying in the starting lineup, Dave Roberts announces (via Bob Nightengale)"

USA Today's Bob Nightengale broke the completely unsurprising news late Tuesday. The fact that this even needed to be said out loud probably points to the mild panic setting in around Los Angeles.

The Dodgers just dropped back-to-back games on the road against the Milwaukee Brewers, putting up a combined five runs in 2-1 and 7-4 losses. When a super-team suddenly forgets how to score, people start asking weird questions about resting stars or shaking up the order.

Roberts shutting that down immediately is the only logical move. You do not bench the guy who single-handedly dictates the entire player prop market every time he steps into the box. If Ohtani is breathing, he is hitting.

The Dodgers head back home to host the Brewers on October 15. Expect Ohtani to be exactly where he belongs, trying to drag this offense out of the mud before the panic in LA goes from mild to full-blown meltdown.