Shohei Ohtani did everything he could to spark a comeback for the Los Angeles Dodgers against the Seattle Mariners. He kick-started the offense with a leadoff homer, then stretched a double in the ninth inning to bring the team close to tying the game. Yet, the conversation eventually circled back to his knee injury after the narrow loss. And for the first time since the All-Star break, he spoke about the issue.

“The discomfort was caused initially by the pitching. So it’s something that I have to work around,” Ohtani said through his translator, as per the short clip uploaded by James¹⁷¹⁸🎌 on X. “And in terms of running, I’m not exactly at 100% capacity. And when I know it’s not, then it’s always a little harder to be aggressive on the base path.”

The two-way superstar hasn’t pitched a game since July 3. Earlier, the manager pulled him from a Pittsburgh Pirates matchup on June 11 due to knee discomfort. Initially, everyone suspected his baserunning was the cause of it, but Ohtani later clarified that it was actually his flawed pitching mechanics that led to the issue.

The Dodgers gave him a rest day, and he was back on the mound again. However, after his last start against the San Diego Padres, the franchise decided to scratch him from pitching indefinitely. 

They were hoping that the All-Star break would be enough for him to recover and get back on the mound again. Even Dave Roberts mentioned that his pitching schedule for the second half was still intact. As it turned out, he later said that Ohtani has yet to fully recover. 

“The knee is where it is in terms of, for it to heal is the first and most important priority,” the 6x All-Star said after the 7-6 loss to the Mariners. “I don’t think the team has really come to a place where [they’ve decided] whether I pitch through it or not. That’s still really up in the air.”

Last Wednesday, Shohei Ohtani had a bullpen session. While he had another scheduled in three days, the Dodgers eventually postponed it. And it remains unclear when he will be able to have another bullpen session. He addressed the same saying:

“If I was completely no issue, 100%, I mean I think things would have gone the way it was supposed to. But if I’m at 90%, which means 10% not quite there, then there’s not really a necessity to force the issue.”

However, his knee isn’t the only issue. He also had a problem with his right bicep. After he threw a season-high 110 pitches in the Padres game, he felt some irritation following a swing. Although it healed, the manager admitted that it came back again. 

“Hopefully, No. 1, take care of the knee, and then not try to have him create velocity with the arm that’s not 100%,” Roberts added. “So that’s kind of where we’re at. If we look at him and his value to our ballclub, we need him in the lineup.”

While the club is playing it safe with Ohtani, they are full of confidence with reinforcements arriving soon. 

Dodgers remain patient despite Shohei Ohtani’s uncertainty

During the time the ace has been absent from the mound, starters like Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Roki Sasaki, Emmet Sheehan, Justin Wrobleski and Eric Lauer have done well to hold the fort. True, they suffered a series sweep at home against the Arizona Diamondbacks right before the All-Star break, but they have managed to win all 3 series in the second half so far. 

In fact, the loss against the Mariners was a narrow one. Plus, they are still at the top of the NL West (67-40). 

The best part is that pitchers like Tyler Glasnow and Blake Snell are nearing their return. Both are expected by early or mid-August. And according to MLB, the Dodgers will activate Edwin Díaz on July 29. Other players like Will Smith, Blake Treinen, and Seth Halvorsen should also be back by next month. 

That’s enough reason for LA to not rush things with Shohei Ohtani, and that’s what gave so much confidence to Dave Roberts when he said, “I don’t think our approach to the deadline has changed given these last three weeks of Shohei.”

Several insiders suggested that the Dodgers would go for reinforcements from other teams during the trade deadline. Many considered Tarik Skubal would be the biggest target for the 2x champions, but the LA skipper instead kept his faith in his internal reinforcements. Even if Ohtani isn’t immediately back to his pitching role, they would wait for him to be 100% in October, and that’s the biggest goal for the Dodgers.