Dave Roberts says Shohei Ohtani will be in NLCS Game 3 lineup despite hitting slump, lingering injuries

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters Tuesday afternoon that Shohei Ohtani will be in the lineup for Game 3 of the NLCS on Wednesday.

Roberts said after his team's loss in Game 2 that they would discuss what is best for Ohtani, as the slugger is just 1-for-7 at the plate through two games of the series.

"Yeah, I mean, obviously, it hasn't been good. He doesn't feel great. I think for me, it's having a conversation with him tomorrow, kind of try to figure out what's best for him, what's best for us. He certainly has earned that conversation and deserves it. "I'll have [that conversation] with him tomorrow."

"Yeah, I mean, obviously, it hasn't been good. He doesn't feel great. I think for me, it's having a conversation with him tomorrow, kind of try to figure out what's best for him, what's best for us. He certainly has earned that conversation and deserves it.

"I'll have [that conversation] with him tomorrow."

Ohtani reportedly said that he was "very convicted" and "adamant" that he feels good enough to play, per Sonja Chen .

Following Roberts' announcement, the designated hitter spoke to the media through interpreter Will Ireton. He said, in part, "I take full responsibility. … The symptoms shouldn't be the reason why I can't hit."

Ohtani's problem isn't just the lack of results at the plate, with a small-sample slump and three strikeouts. The bigger issue has been the quality of his at-bats.

So far in the NLCS, Ohtani has drawn criticism for taking non-competitive at-bats. His strikeout against JoJo Romero in the sixth inning of Game 2, in particular, led some to worry that Ohtani might be too compromised to continue playing.

The Athletic reported that Ohtani has tried to shorten his swing to avoid getting beaten by velocity and to drive the ball the other way.

His struggles have not been limited to this series. Ohtani is 3-for-20 with three walks and seven strikeouts in the postseason. He hasn't registered an extra-base hit, as all three of his hits have been singles. Over his six postseason games so far, he is slashing just .150/.261/.150.

The Dodgers slugger missed a big chunk of the final month of the regular season because of knee and biceps injuries. Since Aug. 14, he slashed .198/.305/.363 in his final 23 regular-season games.

Ohtani was added to the IL in September and didn't play from Sept. 9 to Sept. 23. And when he was activated, he was still dealing with issues. He admitted ahead of the NLDS against the Atlanta Braves that he would need to " manage " both injuries through the playoffs.

On Tuesday, Ohtani spoke about how his injuries have improved. "The symptoms have subdued a lot, especially when I was on the IL," he said. "As of now, the swing is a daily process of trying different things."

The Dodgers seemed to recognize that much early in the postseason, as they dropped Ohtani in the batting order . He hit fourth in the series opener, then moved to fifth for Game 2.

The NLCS is a best-of-seven series, and the Dodgers are down 0-2 to the Milwaukee Brewers as the series moves to Los Angeles for Game 3 on Wednesday .