The Los Angeles Dodgers anticipate Shohei Ohtani will be back in their starting lineup as the designated hitter when the second half of the season begins Friday night. However, the team announced Thursday that Ohtani will not make a pitching start during the upcoming three-game series against the New York Yankees.
This development follows knee treatment Ohtani received during the All-Star break for what the team described as "continued irritation in his left knee." This is the same knee that experienced inflammation last month. While Ohtani continued to serve as the designated hitter in the Dodgers' final series before the break, he skipped the Midsummer Classic in Philadelphia to undergo a procedure where his knee was drained and treated with a pain-relieving injection.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts indicated that doctors advised Ohtani against traveling immediately after the treatment. "Doctors didn't want him to fly right after and get up at altitude," Roberts told ESPN. He added that Ohtani has been trying to limit strain on his knee in recent days, but the team is hopeful he will return to hitting on Friday.
Ohtani's pitching start originally scheduled for last Friday was scratched due to the knee irritation. His pitching performances have shown a dip since June 10, the date his knee first began to bother him. Prior to that, his ERA was 0.74, but in the four starts since, it has risen to 4.38. Ohtani himself noted that pitching places more strain on his knee.
Despite these pitching-related concerns, Ohtani's hitting has remained unaffected. He holds a .953 OPS, ranking fifth among MLB hitters, and a 1.79 ERA, which is second among pitchers with at least 80 innings pitched. Ohtani's discomfort has been centered around his kneecap area, the same location where he underwent surgery in 2019 for a congenital condition.
The Dodgers have stated they are not concerned about the long-term implications of the knee issue and expect Ohtani to return to his full two-way duties for the remainder of the season. However, his return to pitching will be delayed beyond this weekend's series in New York. The team's projected pitching rotation for the Yankees series includes Roki Sasaki on Friday, Emmet Sheehan on Saturday, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto on Sunday.
Ohtani's first pitching start of the second half is now tentatively scheduled for the following week, during the Dodgers' series in Philadelphia against the Phillies. This start would occur on Wednesday, assuming his knee is in suitable condition to allow him to resume full-time two-way responsibilities as initially planned.