NEW YORK – Despite far better hitting numbers among men on base this postseason, Shohei Ohtani will not be moved down in the Los Angeles Dodgers' lineup for Game 3 of the National League Championship Series against the New York Mets, manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday.

Ohtani is 0-for-19 with the bases empty but 6-for-8 with men on while leading in the playoffs.

“It's just funny how things change where there was a lot of concern about Shohei not being able to score with the runners in scoring position – and now we're all trying to find ways… the guys like that “He can hit, can't he?” Roberts said. “I find that kind of weird, a little.”

Neither Roberts nor Ohtani think there's much to the bat's splits at the plate, other than perhaps him chasing pitches a little more here and there, especially against good lefties like Sean Manaea of ​​the Mets and Tanner Scott of the Padres. Roberts also acknowledged his leader took some bad hits against San Diego right-hander Yu Darvish in the NL Division Series.

“I was surprised by Darvish,” Roberts said. “I was surprised that he expanded from Darvish.”

Ohtani added through the team interpreter: “No matter how they attack me, my plan is to stick to the same approach as much as possible and not focus too much on how they attack me. … If so. “If I feel good and the results aren’t there, then I don’t worry too much because luck is part of it.”

According to ESPN Research, Ohtani's pursuit rate increased only slightly from the regular season (26.6%) to the postseason (27.1%).

He was 2-4 in the Dodgers' 9-0 win in Game 1, but was 0-3 in the 7-3 loss in Game 2. Overall, he is 6-for-27 (.222) with five walks in the first postseason appearance of his career. During the regular season, Ohtani batted .308 with men on and .311 with bases empty.

Ohtani said he feels good overall, but every now and then a “reboot” is in order.

“If there's a situation where I'm not comfortable at the plate and I'm not doing well or it's not producing good results, then that's something I look at to make sure that physically and mechanically that's everything “is finely tuned,” he said. “I feel good at the plate. I feel like I should remember the times when I felt good and maybe include that.”

Roberts is confident Ohtani will find his rhythm again in Wednesday's third game at Citi Field.

“I think it’s isolated,” he said. “There were times when he had to sit back, as all batsmen do. Sometimes certain pitchers somehow trigger bad habits. And you have to recognize that in order to then reset. … But I think that's what I'm going to do. “Move Shohei to the 4 or the 3, that's just not going to happen.”

Ohtani scored first in 90 games this season and finished second in 69 games – the only two positions in order at which he has scored this year.

Roberts also indicated that he expects first baseman Freddie Freeman to play Wednesday, as he did in the first two games, as he continues to deal with an ankle injury.

“It's an everyday conversation,” Roberts said, but acknowledged that New York's colder weather isn't helping Freeman's ankle. “I just can’t imagine a world where he wouldn’t start a playoff game in the NLCS. But if he doesn’t make it, that’s very telling.”