Shohei Ohtani arrived at his locker around 2:30 p.m. Pacific Time on Monday, a somewhat late arrival by his own standard for the Los Angeles Dodgers‘ 6:10 p.m. home game against the Cincinnati Reds.
Dodger Stadium hosted a Japanese-language tour that day. That’s not unusual; Japanese fans have flocked to Los Angeles as a tourism destination ever since Ohtani’s arrival in 2024. On a game day, at least, the Japanese speakers are at least as interested in seeing their favorite player on the mound or in the lineup as they are in touring the facilities.
Monday, the fans were not disappointed. About 45 minutes after he arrived, Ohtani was revealed as the Dodgers‘ leadoff hitter against the Reds after missing the previous four games with a variety of injuries. He went 0-for-3 with a walk.
Tuesday, the fans were not so lucky. Ohtani was held out of the lineup for the fifth time in the Dodgers’ previous six games.
The weight of the injuries — principally to Ohtani’s knee, biceps and neck — are obvious. Since Aug. 19, a span of 13 games, Ohtani is 6-for-49 with 21 strikeouts. He has not driven in a run in that span.
Other than three home games against the National League West rival San Diego Padres (Sept. 22-24), the Dodgers play 15 of their final 18 games against teams that will miss the postseason. The Dodgers don’t need Ohtani to pitch in a rotation with Tarik Skubal, Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow; for now, they don’t need him in the lineup every day to win either.
It’s worth asking whether a trip to the 15-day injured list is the Dodgers’ best option. Yet even though he didn’t start Sunday’s series finale against the Nationals, Ohtani grabbed a bat in the dugout for a possible pinch-hitting appearance. The mere threat of baseball’s first 50-50 player in the batter’s box is worth some portion of Ohtani’s $700 million contract.
The Dodgers are playing it smart by reducing Ohtani’s workload at a point in their schedule when they can get away with it. It’s a raw deal for fans who paid good money to see a once-in-a-century player pitch, hit, or both. But if Ohtani is healthy and effective in October, the plan will be justified.