Shohei Ohtani was missing from the Dodgers’ lineup Thursday against the Mariners, and Dave Roberts said the reason was simple: soreness in Ohtani’s left knee.
That absence stood out because Ohtani has still been serving as Los Angeles’ everyday designated hitter even while dealing with knee and biceps issues. But Roberts told reporters before the game that the knee was the reason Ohtani was held out for the series finale.
Earlier this week, Ohtani gave a clearer picture of where things stand with his body and why he has not pitched since July 3 - and won’t be doing so anytime soon.
“My biceps not 100%,” Ohtani said. “Just [a] similar issue with the knee.
Do we consider pushing this? It is still July.
So, I think the conversation would be a little different if we’re in August or September.”
“The discomfort was caused initially by the pitching,” Ohtani said. “So, it’s something I have to work around.
In terms of running, I’m not exactly at 100% capacity. When I know it’s not, then it’s always a little harder to be aggressive on the base path.”
Despite the setbacks, Roberts and president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman both played down the concern and said they expect Ohtani to pitch again this season.
“I guess anything’s possible, but for me, it’s highly unlikely [he doesn’t pitch again],” Roberts said.
"We’re confident he’s going to come back [to pitch]," Friedman said. "Again, if there was something structural, then we would be much more concerned with that.
But there’s not. And the fact that it does keep improving suggests that we’re on the right path and feel very confident that he will be back."
Friedman added that the knee issue, first suffered in June, is what has kept Ohtani off the mound. He described the biceps flare-up as a non-issue.
“If it weren’t for the knee, he would be pitching right now, he would be making his regular turn,” Friedman said. “We kept the arm going.
Does he feel 100% in his arm? No.
But neither does any pitcher in late July. But this is around the knee and making sure that we can get it to a place where there’s just no compensation."
At the plate, Ohtani has still put together a strong season, hitting .289 with 23 home runs, 65 RBIs and an OPS of .931. He started slowly after the All-Star break, when he received a lubricant injection in his knee, but he broke out over the first two games of the Mariners series, going 5-for-9 with a home run and four RBIs.
Roberts said he is very confident Ohtani will be back in the lineup for Friday’s series opener against the Boston Red Sox.
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