The most important batting performance in the baseball world on Tuesday night came in the third inning at loanDepot Park, when Shohei Ohtani continued his push toward 50-50 history by hitting his 48th home run on a second strike.

However, in the Dodgers’ 11-9 loss to the Miami Marlins, the Japanese slugger and favorite for National League Most Valuable Player seemed more concerned with his other at-bats, going just 1-for-5, most notably a sixth-inning opportunity when he pinned runners on the corners for his third strikeout of the game.

“The home run helped kind of close the gap,” Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton after a game in which the Dodgers never recovered from a poor start by Bobby Miller (four runs, two innings) and a shaky bullpen performance (seven runs in six innings).

“But not being able to hit with runners on first and third base,” Ohtani added, “that’s something I look back on.”

Such a response illustrated the duality of Ohtani’s mindset toward the end of the season.

The global superstar has tried to block out the incessant talk about his pursuit of his first Major League Baseball season with 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases – an unprecedented mark he seems increasingly likely to reach with 11 games to go and a 48-48 record.

“It’s something I’ll look back on at the end of the season,” Ohtani said last week as the spotlight grew stronger. “I’m trying to be less conscious of it.”

Instead, Ohtani is focusing on synchronizing his swing technique ahead of his potential postseason debut after having only a .237 batting average since early September (albeit with four home runs, 12 RBIs and five stolen bases).

“No matter the situation, it’s hard to maintain good technique,” Ohtani said. “But I’m really just a little bit away from feeling good. So it’s a little difficult in that regard.”

After triumphantly crossing the 40-40 threshold last month and joining the exclusive club of six players in late August, capped by a walk-off grand slam at Dodger Stadium, Ohtani’s road to 50-50 felt more like an uphill battle.

The $700 million offseason acquisition failed to hit a home run or a stolen base in last weekend’s four-game series in Atlanta, his longest streak without either since early June. And although he delivered a 402-footer on Tuesday night, his habit of chasing throws outside the zone — especially in leverage situations with runners in scoring position — cost him the win in the sixth inning when he missed on consecutive changeups from the plate by Marlins relief pitcher Lake Bachar, making the game a 7-6 affair.

“Throughout today’s game, I wasn’t really sure what zone I wanted to swing in,” said Ohtani, who has just a .223 batting average with runners in scoring position, well below his .287 overall average. “That’s something I’m going to work on.”

While Ohtani has consistently downplayed the 50-50 chase, manager Dave Roberts has shed light on his star’s experiences. Last week, Roberts grinned mischievously when asked if he thought Ohtani was interested in reaching the milestone.

“It’s important to him,” Roberts said. “I think he wants to be the best player to ever play the game, and one way to do that is to do something nobody has ever done. Which he’s already done. But you also like round numbers.”

However, there is a downside to the coin: Roberts recently admitted on Tuesday that the 50-50 principle seemed to have been at the forefront for his leadoff hitter, especially in some of his unsuccessful swings.

“Sometimes there’s a deliberate hit or a deliberate swing,” Roberts said. “What I’ve seen when he’s at his best is he hits more balls to the big part of the field, and then you can see the ball a little longer and be a little more disciplined hitter.”

Roberts is aware of the difficulty of Ohtani’s task. While the manager doesn’t believe Ohtani is under pressure to get to 50-50 – Ohtani expressed the same sentiment on Tuesday – he believes Ohtani “just wants to get it over with” as the Dodgers try to maintain their 3½-game lead in the National League West.

“If he hits good balls, all of this will happen,” Roberts said. “So he doesn’t feel any pressure. He still plays hard. He plays every day. He’s still a threat when he’s in the box. He’s having a great season. (It’s about) just trying to focus on the shot at hand and hitting a good shot.”

There was another subplot over the last week, however. During this trip, Roberts has discussed several times the possibility of Ohtani pitching in a potential playoff series, assuming his rehab from last year’s Tommy John surgery continues to go as expected.

When asked about it on Tuesday, Ohtani said he had not yet had any discussions with the club – but a meeting with team officials was scheduled for next week to “discuss overall rehab progress” – and he was “not sure” if he was physically able to do so.

The good news for Ohtani: 50:50 seems to be close.

He hasn’t had an 11-game streak with fewer than two stolen bases since June 20 through July 3, and he hasn’t had an 11-game streak with fewer than two home runs since May 21 through June 4.

While his focus may be somewhat conflicted—between his path to history, his continued development as a pitcher, and preparing for a possible postseason—a 50-50 situation is certainly in sight.

“It’s something that’s obviously been cumulative over the course of the year,” he said. “It really shows that I’ve contributed to the team. However, the team is going through a bit of a difficult period right now, so I’m focused on contributing to the team regardless.”

Gonsolin “conversation” is imminent

The Dodgers weren’t expecting Tony Gonsolin to return this season following Tommy John surgery, but with Gonsolin continuing to make progress in his recovery and the Dodgers desperately needing all the pitching help they can get before October, the right-hander could be an option after all.

Roberts announced Tuesday that Gonsolin will make his third minor league rehab start this weekend with Triple-A Oklahoma City, and the club hopes he can complete four innings.

If that goes well, Roberts said, the Dodgers could have a “conversation” about activating Gonsolin before the end of the regular season – giving him the opportunity to either start games or pitch many innings out of the bullpen in the final stretch and possibly the postseason.

Roberts acknowledged that Gonsolin is “less likely” to carry a significant load. Just a few weeks ago, he said Gonsolin would only join the team in a “crazy scenario.”

The Dodgers’ current situation would qualify, however. They lost Tyler Glasnow for the season, Gavin Stone is unlikely to return from his shoulder injury, and Clayton Kershaw’s status is still uncertain as he battles a toe injury.

“It’s still a more unlikely proposition, but I’m really impressed that Tony really took this seriously as a potential opportunity,” Roberts said of Gonsolin, the 2022 All-Star who underwent surgery last August.