Shohei Ohtani has largely remained healthy in his first full season as a two-way player for the Los Angeles Dodgers, but continued left knee irritation is preventing him from pitching for the time being.
Ohtani has dealt with other minor injuries throughout the year, including a blister on his right middle finger and right biceps tightness.
The 32-year-old believes the latter two issues have more to do with adjusting back to being a two-way player, but admitted his knee injury could be related to poor pitching mechanics.
“I see it as overall wear and tear,” Ohtani said of his 2026 injuries through interpreter Will Ireton. “What’s been happening over the course of this year, I believe it’s more of a wear and tear. But in terms of the knee, I think it’s more of my pitching mechanics. So that’s something I need to work on.”
Ohtani said before the All-Star break that he would likely need to make some mechanical adjustments to aid his knee and wondered if having surgery in September 2019 is related to the current trouble.
The Dodgers originally planned for Ohtani to have his left knee drained over the All-Star break, but instead was administered an Orthovisc injection, which provides pain relief and shock absorption, and is frequently used to treat osteoarthritis (commonly known as arthritis).
The Dodgers at this point don’t have a target date for Ohtani to return to the mound, but he will miss at least a few turns while waiting for the injection to fully kick in.
Ohtani has maintained that the knee irritation primarily affects him when pitching and will remain in the Dodgers lineup as their designated hitter.
Shohei Ohtani potentially throwing bullpen session to test left knee
When Ohtani is able to return to pitching could soon become more clear as he hopes to throw a bullpen session over the weekend.
Although Ohtani is not currently able to pitch, he did play long toss between the Dodgers’ doubleheader games at Yankee Stadium on Sunday. Ohtani then played catch again before the series opener against the Philadelphia Phillies.
Given his importance to the team, the Dodgers are surely to err on the side of caution in handling Ohtani’s path back to the mound. They figure to also look to provide more days of rest for their superstar down the stretch of the season.
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