Potential pitchers' duel awaits as Twins' Joe Ryan, Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani take mound

The Minnesota Twins should have no trouble selling tickets for Wednesday night's game.

In one of the best -- if not the best -- pitching matchups of the season at Target Field, Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers will oppose Joe Ryan of the Twins in the series finale in Minneapolis.

"You're going to see two of the best pitchers in baseball go at it," Twins manager Derek Shelton said.

The Dodgers will look to finish a three-game sweep. They cruised to a 12-3 win on Tuesday after holding on for a 2-1 victory in the series opener Monday.

Now comes Ohtani (7-2, 1.47 ERA), a right-hander who is slated to make his 13th start of the season. He has 78 strikeouts in 73 2/3 innings.

Ohtani has five victories in his past six outings. He is coming off a win in his most recent start last Wednesday, when he allowed four runs on seven hits in six innings in a 5-4 win against the Tampa Bay Rays. Ohtani walked one and struck out five.

This will be his fifth career start against the Twins. In his first four outings, Ohtani is 1-0 with a 2.21 ERA and has 30 strikeouts in 20 1/3 innings.

Minnesota will counter with Ryan (5-3, 2.99 ERA), who is set to make his 17th start. The right-hander needs one more strikeout to reach 100 for the season.

Ryan also is aiming for back-to-back victories after holding off the Texas Rangers on Thursday. He scattered three hits over five scoreless innings in a 9-3 victory, and he walked two and struck out seven.

In one career start against the Dodgers, Ryan has allowed six runs (five earned) on nine hits in five innings. He walked one and struck out four, and he took the 10-3 loss on Aug. 9, 2022.

Ryan said he is looking forward to his matchup against the Dodgers. He told reporters that he rarely worries about the opposing starting pitcher, but this will be a special case because he likely will face Ohtani at the plate.

"He's obviously the greatest baseball player ever," Ryan said. "In that regard, maybe I'll recognize it a little bit more. But on start day, I'm not really concerned with who's on the other side. But it will be a good time."

The Dodgers played without outfielder Kyle Tucker (lower back spasms) and catcher Dalton Rushing (potential concussion) on Tuesday after both players left with ailments in Monday's series opener. Tucker is expected to remain out of the lineup Wednesday, but Rushing could return.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts praised journeyman catcher Chuckie Robinson for stepping in Tuesday while Rushing was sidelined. Robinson went 2-for-4 and drove in a run with a perfectly placed safety squeeze bunt that scored Alex Call.

"He's done everything we've asked of him," Roberts said of Robinson.

Roberts also praised his players for their approach at the plate. He will look for another focused effort when the Dodgers go against Ryan in the series finale.

"(On Tuesday), there was a presence for each guy in the batter's box," Roberts said. "There was some intent behind their at-bats."

--Field Level Media