Phillies' Shohei Ohtani dominance looks more insane (and stings more) everyday

The Philadelphia Phillies had high expectations for their 2025 season. They captured the NL East for the second straight year, while maintaining stability to challenge a team as great as the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Phillies got that matchup in the NLDS and knew it wouldn't be easy knowing who they had to face.

Dodgers two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani was the main focal point for the Phillies, the main threat to their World Series aspirations. They knew they had to quiet him the best they could, and it worked to perfection, but the Phillies still couldn't win the series.

What makes it feel even worse is that Ohtani has been on a tear ever since that NLDS appearance. It makes the series against the Phillies, and what they did to him, almost incomprehensible.

Phillies had everything going for them against Shohei Ohtani in NLDS

Ohtani is possibly the most feared hitter in MLB. He very well could win his fourth MVP in just a couple of weeks, and that makes him a player to scout more than anyone, especially in the postseason.

The Phillies did their homework on him coming in and approached him to perfection. They made Ohtani look silly the entire series. They held him to a .056 batting average with nine strikeouts in just four games.

Fans took notice of how insane it seemed, especially after Ohtani's recent run, and that includes The Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Mike Sielski.

"The Phillies' handling of Shohei Ohtani in the NLDS might turn out to be the best collective pitching performance of this century. And they still lost the damn series," Sielski posted on X (formerly Twitter) during the 18-inning marathon Game 3 in which Ohtani went 4-for-4 with two home runs, two doubles, three RBIs and five walks (four intentional).

Surprisingly, the dominance didn't start in the NLDS. For his career against the Phillies, Ohtani was only hitting .250 with three home runs in the 18 games prior. He was even worse at Citizens Bank Park, where he has a career .091 batting average and no home runs.

If you had asked Phillies fans before the NLDS how they felt about their team's odds if the pitching limited Ohtani to 1-for-18, they would have assumed a much easier series win. Instead, the Phillies are sitting at home watching Ohtani light up the postseason, hitting eight home runs in 15 games while sporting a ridiculous 1.109 OPS with the Dodgers looking for back-to-back World Series titles.

Ohtani is an incredible talent, maybe even the best to ever put on a baseball uniform, including throwing 100 mph off the mound as a starting pitcher. Postseason moments are meant for the game's biggest stars, and Ohtani is right up there with them. He's felt like a runaway train since that NLDS.

The Phillies pitching staff did its job, subduing one of baseball's biggest giants. They won the battle, but couldn't win the war. That's how it felt for much of their postseason run, and now look for next season to be the year they win it all.