Shohei Ohtani vs. Pirates: Hitless vs. Skenes, two-way star takes mound

Baseball, in its simplest form, is a game of cat-and-mouse between the pitcher and batter.

That battle becomes really intense when one of best at each position go head-to-head.

Baseball fans got one of those matchups on Tuesday, June 9, in the opener of a three-game series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Pittsburgh Pirates: Reigning National League MVP Shohei Ohtani vs. reigning NL Cy Young winner Paul Skenes.

The Pirates right-hander got the better of the Dodgers slugger, with Skenes striking out Ohtani in the third inning and retiring him on groundouts twice more before exiting the game after the sixth.

But with Skenes out of the game, the Dodgers put together a 10-run seventh inning and went on to win 12-3. Ohtani finished the night 1-for-4 with two RBIs.

Also one of the top pitchers in the game, Ohtani will take the mound for L.A. in Game 2 of the series on Wednesday in Pittsburgh.

It will be the first time Ohtani has pitched against the Pirates as a member of the Dodgers and second overall in his career.

As a member of the Los Angeles Angels, Ohtani faced the Bucs on July 21, 2023, striking out nine, but giving up five runs in 6⅓ innings − four of them on home runs by Jack Suwinski, Ji Man Choi and Henry Davis, twice. Ohtani still got the win as the Angels defeated the Pirates 8-5.

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Milwaukee Brewers catcher Gary Sanchez wears a special chest protector to commemorate Jackie Robinson Day during the game against the Toronto Blue Jays at American Family Field on April 15, 2026.

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The Pittsburgh Pirates’ Konnor Griffin celebrates with a traffic cone after making his major-league debut in a 5-4 defeat of the Baltimore Orioles at PNC Park on April 3, 2026.

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Cleveland Guardians players warm up as the launch of NASA’s Artemis II is shown on the center-field video board at Dodger Stadium on April 1, 2026.

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Two F-35C planes from Air Test and Evaluation Squadron NINE Detachment Edwards Air Force Base perform a flyover before the Opening Day game between the Arizona Diamondbacks and Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on March 26, 2026.

So far this season Ohtani has been among the best pitchers in the majors. In 61 innings over 10 starts, he has a 0.74 ERA, 0.79 WHIP and 67 strikeouts.

At the plate, he’s hit 11 home runs with 37 RBIs and has a slash line of .301/.417/.521.

Ohtani is expected to be in the lineup in both capacities on Wednesday when the Dodgers take on the Pirates.

Game 2 between the Dodgers and Pirates begins at 6:40 p.m. ET on Wednesday, June 10. The game can be viewed on SportsNet LA for in-market Los Angeles viewers and SportsNet Pittsburgh for Pittsburgh viewers. The game can also be streamed on Fubo.

• Date: Wednesday, June 10

• Time: 6:40 p.m. ET / 3:40 p.m. PT

• Venue: PNC Park

• Location: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

• TV: Time Warner Cable SportsNet LA and SportsNet Pittsburgh

• Streaming: MLB.TV on Fubo

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY Sports: Shohei Ohtani set to resume double-duty as Dodgers face Pirates