Los Angeles Dodgers two-way star Shohei Ohtani will be taking the mound on Wednesday in the series finale against the Minnesota Twins.It remains to be seen if he's also hitting.Ahead of the game, the Twins announced a scheduling change with Ohtani scheduled to be on the mound. Minnesota is planning to open the gates at Target Field 30 minutes earlier than they normally would for the game.The gates will be opened at 5 p.m. local time, as opposed to the usual 5:30 p.m. for a 6:40 p.m. game.#MNTwins plan to open the gates 30 minutes earlier than on usual on Weds. at 5 p.m. Shohei Ohtani listed as the #Dodgers pitcher in the finale.— DanHayesMLB (@DanHayesMLB) June 23, 2026The Twins likely see an opportunity with Ohtani on the mound to allow fans extra time in the ballpark. Whenever Ohtani plays (and more so, pitches), it tends to bring out large crowds, and this will almost certainly be the only time this season that he takes the mound at Target Field.Ohtani has been battling blisters on his throwing hand over the last few starts, but he will try to bounce back. This issue has seen his ERA jump up past 1.00, with the ace uncharacteristically struggling in his last two starts.Against the Pittsburgh Pirates on June 10, Ohtani threw 6.2 innings, allowing four runs (three earned) while striking out six. In his most recent start against the Tampa Bay Rays, he went six innings, giving up four runs and striking out five batters.Before the game against Pittsburgh, Ohtani hadn't allowed more than two runs in a start. The blisters have clearly impacted him on the mound, even if Ohtani has pushed back on the idea.“No issues with the blisters. I don’t think it’s been affecting my performance,” Ohtani said. “Just the last couple at-bats, I wish I got some calls my way, but it just didn’t turn out that way, and that’s the part that I wish I could have been able to change a little bit.”Even with the recent poor outings, Ohtani has put together a Cy Young-worthy season for the Dodgers on the mound. Overall, he has posted an ERA of 1.47 over 12 starts, throwing 73.2 innings.Ohtani's last two starts have greatly hurt his Cy Young campaign, especially with his competition in the NL.Pitchers such as Jacob Misiorowski of the Milwaukee Brewers and Cristopher Sanchez of the Philadelphia Phillies have both put together special seasons, and will finish with significantly more innings than Ohtani.If Ohtani continues to perform at this level the rest of the season, he should at least be a finalist for the Cy Young award. But at this point, his candidacy seems like a long shot, barring any major changes going forward.Sign up for our free newsletter and follow us on X/Twitter and Facebook for the latest newsAdd us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow