The Dodgers got an unexpected shakeup in their lineup on Wednesday, and the biggest surprise was Shohei Ohtani being left out after it sounded like he’d be back.
Ohtani had already missed Tuesday’s game after returning from a four-game absence on Monday, and manager Dave Roberts said after Tuesday night, “He'll be in there tomorrow.”
That didn’t hold. Roberts said Wednesday that Ohtani hasn’t “totally recovered” from Monday’s game and that a swing that night “didn’t feel great.”
Roberts said Ohtani would sit Wednesday, then the team would “huddle up” to figure out what comes next. An injured list stint is now a possibility.
That’s a notable turn after Roberts said Tuesday the Dodgers wanted to be careful with Ohtani over the final stretch of the regular season. “Talking to the training staff, it’s more the thought of, ‘Let’s build him up slowly,'” Roberts said. “So I think a day here or there is not the worst thing, to make sure overall that his body feels as close to 100% as possible.”
Now, with Ohtani out on consecutive days and an off day coming Thursday, the situation looks more serious. Since he restarted his throwing program on Aug. 8 - a program that has since been shut down - Ohtani is hitting .198 with four home runs, 10 RBIs and an OPS of .689 in 24 games.
Freddie Freeman was also missing from the lineup, and that one came with its own concern. Freeman had been the designated hitter on Tuesday with Ohtani out as the Dodgers continued to manage his workload late in the season, but he was scratched Wednesday ahead of Thursday’s off day and after already sitting out one game on this homestand.
Roberts said Freeman is dealing with right knee discomfort. He also made it clear that an IL move for Freeman is “absolutely not” being considered.
Freeman is in a 1-for-18 slide over his last five games and has gone 0-for-7 against the Reds in this series.
With both Ohtani and Freeman out, the Dodgers moved forward Wednesday night looking to complete the sweep against Cincinnati.
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