The Los Angeles Dodgers finished off a three-game sweep of the Minnesota Twins with a 4-3 win Wednesday night. But the talk afterward wasn’t about the sweep or even Shohei Ohtani’s latest strong start. It was about catcher Dalton Rushing, who didn’t hold back on how he felt about his own performance.
Ohtani moved to 8-2 on the season, working six innings and allowing three runs — two earned — on five hits with eight strikeouts. His ERA dropped to 1.58. That’s all fine. But the second inning was a mess, and Rushing was right in the middle of it.
The Twins loaded the bases. Then came a sequence where Ohtani and Rushing clearly weren’t on the same page. Rushing was expecting an off-speed pitch. Ohtani threw a 101 mph fastball that sailed past him. Passed ball, run scores. Two more runs came across on a Ryan Kreidler single. Suddenly the Twins were up 3-1.
Earlier in the game, Rushing also seemed to disagree with Ohtani’s decision to challenge a pitch call via the automated ball-strike system. The challenge worked. The review showed Ohtani’s 89 mph sweeper catching the zone.
None of it rattled Ohtani. He struck out the side in the third and retired his last seven batters in a row. He also drove in a run with a single during a three-run third that gave the Dodgers the lead back.
Rushing, though, was blunt about his own night.
“I think he did a good job,” Rushing said. “I didn’t do a great job, start to finish. Pretty embarrassing. Thankfully, he’s as good as he is, and he can take control of a game. Pretty embarrassing.”
He didn’t stop there. Rushing acknowledged that manager Dave Roberts, first baseman Freddie Freeman and the coaching staff had his back. But he wasn’t letting himself off the hook.
“It’s great. They always have my back,” Rushing said. “Once again, it’s embarrassing that I need support like that. I’m a grown man. It’s a pretty tough pill to swallow. Both sides of the ball, it was not a great showing. Hasn’t been great as of late. I’m going to be better.”
At the plate, it was just as rough. Rushing went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. He’s hitting .245 this season with eight homers and 22 RBIs.
Meanwhile, Mookie Betts went 3-for-4 and hit his 300th career home run. Alex Call, Max Muncy and Ohtani drove in runs. Tanner Scott picked up his 11th save. Kyle Hurt and Alex Vesia combined for two scoreless innings of relief to lock down the one-run win.
But the lasting image from this game might be Rushing standing in front of reporters and calling himself embarrassing. It’s the kind of honest self-assessment that doesn’t always happen after a win. We’ll see how he bounces back.
Leave a Comment