{"id":680365,"date":"2026-04-21T13:51:51","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T13:51:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/680365\/"},"modified":"2026-04-21T13:51:51","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T13:51:51","slug":"dodgers-news-dave-roberts-claps-back-at-craig-counsells-latest-ohtani-gripe-dodgersbeat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/680365\/","title":{"rendered":"Dodgers News: Dave Roberts Claps Back at Craig Counsell’s Latest Ohtani Gripe \u2013 DodgersBeat"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

LOS ANGELES \u2014 There seems to be a cottage industry brewing in the baseball world. Since the Dodgers have captured their second straight World Series, the rest of the league has taken to whining about this or that \u201cunfairness\u201d that gives the Dodgers a structural advantage over other teams. Their latest target: the \u201cOhtani Rule.\u201d And their latest spokesman is Cubs manager Craig Counsell<\/a>.<\/p>\n

What Counsell Said<\/p>\n

The statement from the longtime Brewers and now Cubs\u2019 manager Counsell was made earlier this week. In discussing the MLB limit on 13 pitchers on the roster, Counsell said, \u201cIt\u2019s a rule to help offense, I think, more than anything, if you ask me.\u201d<\/p>\n

Okay. Fair enough. But then came the part of the quote that got everybody\u2019s feathers ruffled. \u201cAnd then there\u2019s one team that\u2019s allowed to carry basically one of both,\u201d he said, \u201cand that he gets special consideration. Which is probably the most bizarre rule. \u2026 For one team.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hmmm. What team are you referring to there, Craig? Could it be the back-to-back champion Los Angeles Dodgers? Is THAT whom you\u2019re talking about?<\/p>\n

First off, Counsell, if you\u2019re going to whine about somebody, have the courtesy to at least name them in your rant. More on that later.<\/p>\n

Of course, you just can\u2019t lob a grenade over the palace walls and not have folks respond to it. And Dave Roberts did just that on Monday. Basically, Roberts said, \u201cGet your own Ohtani.\u201d<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the exact quote. First, he acknowledge the truth of the situation. \u201cThe thing is it certainly\u00a0benefits us\u00a0because we have the player\u2026\u201d No kidding.<\/p>\n

But then, he pushed back on the complaint a bit. \u201cWe\u2019re more than willing for other teams to go out and find a player who can do both. He\u2019s an exception because he\u2019s an exceptional player. It is what it is.\u201d<\/p>\n

In other words, instead of whining about it, how about developing a two-way player of your own? Indeed, there are many players who are two-way players in college (Paul Skenes<\/a> was a great hitter, for example. Jac Caglianone<\/a> was a great pitcher at Florida St.). Maybe give these guys a shot at being the next Ohtani? Or if not them, maybe the next player that comes down the pike. How about you try that?<\/p>\n

The Ohtani Rule<\/p>\n

The \u201cOhtani Rule\u201d is the MLB change that lets a starting pitcher who is also listed as the designated hitter stay in the batting order after he leaves the mound, which is why Shohei Ohtani<\/a> can pitch early in a game and still keep hitting later on. MLB explained that under amended Rule 5.11, the starter is treated as \u201ctwo separate people for purposes of Rule 5.11(a),\u201d so \u201cif the starting pitcher is replaced, he can continue as the Designated Hitter, and if the Designated Hitter is replaced, he can continue as the pitcher (but can no longer hit for himself).\u201d In plain English, it was created to preserve the DH spot for a true two-way starter instead of forcing the team to lose the DH as soon as that player comes out of the game.<\/p>\n

However, that\u2019s not the bitch that Counsell is making here. His gripe has to do with the roster limit on pitchers. The roster-limit language is essentially that a qualified two-way player is exempt from the pitcher cap. MLB\u2019s official glossary says teams are generally limited to 13 pitchers on the active roster, but \u201ctwo-way players are able to pitch in any situation but don\u2019t count toward the active roster\u2019s pitcher total.\u201d It also explains that clubs must otherwise designate players as either pitchers or position players, and position players who are not designated as two-way players face restrictions on when they can pitch. (MLB.com<\/a>)<\/p>\n

In other words, if a player like Ohtani is designated a \u201ctwo-way\u201d player, the team (i.e., the Dodgers) get their two way player AND 13 pitchers, thus giving them an \u201cextra\u201d pitcher.<\/p>\n

Why Counsell\u2019s Complaints Are Empty<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s the thing. The two-way player exceptions were put in place in 2022, well before Shohei joined the Dodgers. And did we hear any complaints at the time? Not a peep. Why? Because the Angels were a joke, and Ohtani\u2019s two-way status was seen as a \u201ccute\u201d little story that might get some more eyeballs on the sport.<\/p>\n

Now, that Shohei is playing for a powerful team like the Dodgers, all of a sudden, this rule is a problem. That doesn\u2019t sound like somebody arguing for fairness. That sounds more like envy.<\/p>\n

Rosters Should Be Up to the Teams<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s be honest. The limit on the number of pitchers on a roster is arbitrary. And it\u2019s relatively new in baseball. For decades, it was the business of the team how many pitchers and position players they carried. If a team wanted fifteen relievers, they could have it. Of course, the need for relief pitching has skyrocketed in recent years. If I throw Drysdale, Koufax, and Osteen at you on a nightly basis, the bullpen arms are going to be well-rested much of the time. These guys would pitch nearly 300 innings a season.<\/p>\n

Now, a starter is lucky if they pitch 150-200. Which puts more pressure on the bullpen. Which means teams are looking for every advantage they can find. And what better advantage than having the best hitter in the league also happen to be the best pitcher?<\/p>\n

More Dodgers Coverage:<\/p>\n

Have you subscribed to the Bleed Los Podcast YouTube channel<\/a>? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows & promotions, and stay up to date on all Dodgers news and rumors!<\/p>\n

Related<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"LOS ANGELES \u2014 There seems to be a cottage industry brewing in the baseball world. Since the Dodgers…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":680366,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2406],"tags":[5,39,1165,4332,4333,774,57,3224,4331,4],"class_list":{"0":"post-680365","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-los-angeles-dodgers","8":"tag-baseball","9":"tag-dodgers","10":"tag-la","11":"tag-la-dodgers","12":"tag-ladodgers","13":"tag-los-angeles","14":"tag-los-angeles-dodgers","15":"tag-losangeles","16":"tag-losangelesdodgers","17":"tag-mlb"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@mlb\/116443030797816297","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/680365","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=680365"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/680365\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/680366"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=680365"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=680365"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/mlb\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=680365"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}