Shohei Ohtani has long been baseball’s unicorn. But as it turns out, even the unicorn is human, and after undergoing two Tommy John surgeries, carrying a two-way workload at 32 years old is no easy task. With the Los Angeles Dodgers shutting Ohtani down from pitching for the foreseeable future, one MLB analyst believes the Japanese superstar should step away from the mound altogether.

“Not only should they shut him down from pitching for the rest of the season, but forever! Enough with the pitching!” Rob Parker said on MLB Now. I’m sorry. I want him to be in the lineup every day.”

Earlier in the week, the Dodgers concluded that Ohtani’s knee gets irritated and inflamed only during pitching. Landing on his troubled leg after completing the pitching motion disturbs Ohtani’s knee more. So, the franchise decided Ohtani would continue with his DH duties but skip his pitching starts.

Batting .284 with a .919 OPS, Ohtani has recorded 22 home runs and 60 RBIs in 433 plate appearances in 2026. He navigated a lengthy hitting slump earlier in the season, when he went without a homer for 11 games straight. However, Ohtani has found his rhythm at the plate again.

The four-time MVP looked like a probable Cy Young contender at one point in the season. Before the Dodgers shut him down, he posted a 1.79 ERA across 14 starts. But those hopes appear to be dashed, as Dave Roberts revealed on Monday that Ohtani will most likely not take the mound again in the regular season.

Amid his injury complications, Parker stated that he would rather have Ohtani hitting regularly than throwing. He also pointed out that the Dodgers don’t need Ohtani pitching for them to win the World Series. The Japanese player has not recorded a win in his two starts (7.56 ERA) in the Fall Classic.

There is currently no active player that matches Ohtani’s skill set. The nearest reference point MLB has is the legendary Babe Ruth. Comparing him with Ruth, Parker stated that Ohtani, too, must make a decision and choose one.

“That was the best Shohei we ever saw…There is a day, as it happened for the Babe (Ruth), who basically said this is too much, right? I can’t keep doing them both. And in the modern game, it’s even harder,” Parker continued. “And he’s done it longer than the Babe did. There’s a day coming where we’ll have to make that decision.”

Babe Ruth began his career as a pitcher in 1915. However, he limited his pitching career only four years later in 1919, turning his focus to hitting completely. In contrast to Ruth, Ohtani has been throwing for multiple seasons now, since 2018. The workload is bound to catch up at some point.

Moreover, as the veteran MLB analyst pointed out, Ohtani became the first player in MLB to achieve a 50-50 season in 2024, when he was not throwing. Hence, Parker believes a relaxed workload will help Ohtani excel at the plate.