The Los Angeles Dodgers are in a rough patch, dropping their fourth straight game with a 6-2 loss to the San Francisco Giants on Tuesday. But amidst the losing streak, one bright spot emerged: Shohei Ohtani finally broke out of his slump.

Ohtani went 2-for-4 at the plate, delivering a single, a home run, and a walk. That home run—his seventh of the season—was his first since April 26, and he was the only Dodger to record multiple hits in the loss. However, with his next scheduled start coming up against Robbie Ray, the Dodgers plan to give Ohtani a day off from hitting for the final two games of the homestand.

Manager Dave Roberts explained the reasoning behind the breather. "For me, with any hitter, when the quality of at-bat starts to go down consistently, I think that's a telling sign there needs to be a break," Roberts said. "Because you're just not able to—whether it's the mechanics, the mind—just stay within your game plan, and then the chase starts to spike. There's a workload component with some players, but that are more on the defensive side."

Adding to the night's entertainment, rapper Ice Cube joined the broadcast alongside Joe Davis and Orel Hershiser.

Meanwhile, rookie pitcher Roki Sasaki continues to show steady improvement with each start. Before the Giants got to him in the top of the sixth inning on Monday, Sasaki had held San Francisco to just one run over five innings, striking out five and walking only one. His progress has only reinforced the Dodgers' confidence in him as a long-term rotation piece.

"We definitely see him as a long-term starting pitcher," president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman told The Athletic. "We are very firm believers that he has the ability and the upside to be an elite starting pitcher in this game."

And in a nostalgic nod to Dodgers history, it's been nearly a decade since Charlie Culberson's iconic walk-off home run that clinched the NL West during Vin Scully's final broadcast at Dodger Stadium—a moment that still resonates with fans old and new.