Phillies pitchers receive lofty praise for shutting down Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani

During the NLDS, while the Philadelphia Phillies lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers, they managed to shut down one of the game's best players in Shohei Ohtani.

Ohtani gave up three runs in Game 1 of the NLDS, and at the plate, he was a shell of his regular-season self. The Phillies pitchers, both the starters and the relievers, were incredible when pitching to Ohtani all series long.

Ahead of the Dodgers' NLCS series against the Milwaukee Brewers, Dodgers executive Andrew Friedman was asked about his concerns regarding Ohtani's production at the plate. Friedman's response was very high praise for the Phillies' pitchers, and Brewers manager Pat Murphy joined in on the praise for the Phillies' pitching staff.

Phillies pitchers receive high praise from Dodgers' Andrew Friedman and Brewers' Pat Murphy

Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic shared Friedman's response when asked about Ohtani's playoff struggles from the NLCS. "Andrew Friedman attributed some of Shohei Ohtani's struggles against the Phillies to how they nailed their plan against him." Ardaya writes.

Andrew Friedman attributed some of Shohei Ohtani’s struggles against the Phillies to how they nailed their plan against him. “The most impressive (pitch) execution against a hitter I’ve ever seen,” Friedman said.

"The most impressive (pitch) execution against a hitter I've ever seen," Friedman said. This praise was very lofty from Friedman. This high praise was deserved, however, as the Phillies pitchers shut down Ohtani all series long.

In four games during the NLDS, across 20 plate appearances, Ohtani had one hit, one RBI, two walks (one intentional), culminating in a .206 OPS. A .206 batting average would be a poor number, but for the Phillies to hold Ohtani's OPS to such a number is remarkable.

In Game 1 of the NLCS against the Brewers, Ohtani didn't have a hit, but reached base three times with three walks. Against the Cincinnati Reds, Ohtani had two home runs, three hits, and four RBIs across the series.

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Only the Phillies shut Ohtani down to such a degree. Cristopher Sanchez, Ranger Suarez, Aaron Nola, and Jesus Luzardo shut down Ohtani all series long. Add in the performance of the Phillies' relievers, Ohtani didn't play a factor in the Dodgers' offense.

Pat Murphy, as Paul Casella of MLB.com shared, also had high praise for the Phillies' trio of lefty pitchers for shutting down Ohtani. "I think most people struggle against Sanchez, Luzardo, and Suarez," Murphy said. "Those guys are really, really good. So I don't consider Ohtani struggling."

Caleb Cotham and the pitching staff had a near-perfect plan for Ohtani during the NLDS. Shutting down a player like Ohtani, who is likely to win the NL MVP, is impressive regardless of how long it lasts. To shut Ohtani down during a four-game postseason series is nothing short of remarkable.

The fact that both teams were asked about Ohtani's struggles in the NLDS shows just how dominant the Phillies pitchers were when facing Ohtani. While being eliminated stings, knowing that the Phillies have multiple elite pitchers who can shut down one of the best hitters in baseball so completely is something to feel great about.

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