Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts announced two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani will not pitch in his next scheduled start against the Philadelphia Phillies Wednesday due to his lingering knee injury.
Ohtani’s knee injury first flared up in June, causing miss one start and one game due to the injury in July. He underwent a minor procedure during the All-Star break—causing him to miss the Midsummer Classic.
“Shohei’s not going to start on Wednesday,” Roberts said. “His knee, we just want to continue to give it the best chance to get into a good spot. As he said, as we feel, it’s the pitching and the torque of landing on that leg that gets it upset. I think that the hitting doesn’t do that, so we’re trying to give it as much time as possible.”
According to Roberts, Ohtani spoke up after feeling something in his knee while playing catch, and has not thrown a bullpen since his procedure.
“He was just playing catch, and then also the feeling of where he’s at, he feels day-to-day, so that was enough for him to talk to the trainers and feel that there was no reason to test it with a bullpen when he already knew the answer. For us, it’s more like we’ve done many times over, erring on the side of caution.”
When Will Ohtani be Back on the Mound?
Roberts did not provide an exact timeline for Ohtani’s return to the mound, but is confident he will pitch again at some point this season.
“It’s going to be some time. It’s not going to be a day-to-day thing. I think that once we’ve moved Emmet, the rotation is going to keep going forward without Shohei for the time being. I can’t speak to how long that’s going to be.”
“…You’d like to think that Shohei will be back at some time.”
The Dodgers will hope Ohtani can recover quickly, as he has been one of their best pitchers on the year. He has made 14 starts this season, posting a 1.79 ERA through 85.2 innings pitched while recording 95 strikeouts.
Will Shohei Ohtani Still Be Hitting?
While his knee issue casts some doubt over his overall health, the Dodgers are keeping him in the lineup for the time being.
Ohtani will still be available to hit, and will start as the Dodgers’ designated hitter in the first game of their doubleheader Sunday. Roberts said he will “see how the first game goes” when deciding if he will also participate in the second game of the day.
