Shohei Ohtani’s path back to the Dodgers’ rotation took another small turn, but the latest update points toward Friday in Detroit as the key checkpoint.
Dave Roberts said Ohtani’s bullpen work has been pushed back to Comerica Park before the series opener against the Tigers. That means the Dodgers will wait a little longer before they know how the next few days line up for his return to pitching.
“I do know he’s going to throw a bullpen on Friday in Detroit, and after that then we’ll know how the forthcoming days look,” Roberts said on SportsNet LA.
Earlier in the week, Roberts had said Ohtani would either face batters for a second time or throw a bullpen session at Truist Park heading into the road trip. After Tuesday night’s loss, that choice had been narrowed to a bullpen on Wednesday or Thursday. Now the timeline has moved again, with Friday set as the next major step.
The Dodgers have been careful with the schedule, but there is still a target window. Ohtani has historically thrown bullpen sessions two days before a start, and it had previously been reported that his return to the rotation could come as soon as Sunday. Roberts didn’t lock in a date, but he did acknowledge the possibilities.
“Sunday is a day, as is Tuesday,” Roberts noted. “Right now, I don’t think anyone knows how any day looks until he throws that bullpen.”
Tyler Glasnow is part of the same puzzle. He’s scheduled to pitch Sunday, and the Dodgers will sort out the matchup depending on whether Ohtani is ready by then.
If Ohtani isn’t, Glasnow would start the series finale against the Tigers. If Ohtani is ready, Glasnow would work out of the bullpen.
When Ohtani does get back on the mound, the Dodgers expect his first outing to be limited to one inning. The club plans to build him up in a similar way to last year, though Roberts said the Dodgers will be more aggressive than that slower progression.
Ohtani hasn’t pitched since July 3 against the San Diego Padres, when he threw a season-high 110 pitches over six innings. That was also the most he has thrown in a Dodgers uniform. After that outing, he was removed from the rotation indefinitely because of lingering left knee trouble.
His throwing program was then shut down for several weeks, and he hit another snag after a bullpen session at Citizens Bank Park on July 22. Ohtani didn’t even play catch on the field again until Aug. 8 at Chase Field.
Now, after that long ramp-up, the Dodgers believe he’s finally in the right place physically and close to resuming his two-way role.
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