The Los Angeles Dodgers activated Shohei Ohtani off the 15-day injured list and optioned Josue De Paula to Triple-A Oklahoma City prior to Wednesday’s game against the San Diego Padres.
Ohtani returns on the first day of being eligible. The official designation for his stint on the injured list was right biceps inflammation, but Ohtani was dealing with overall arm trouble in addition to left knee soreness.
Ohtani played an extended stretch of the season with the health issues and started to become compromised at the plate.
“I would say if he was a five, he’s probably an eight or a nine right now,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of Ohtani’s improved health.
He’s back with the team without completing a rehab assignment or facing live pitching. In lieu of that, Ohtani’s hitting progression started with taking swings off a tee, then he advanced to facing pitching from a coach before at-bats against the Trajekt machine.
Ohtani also ran the bases last Saturday to further test the state of his knee. The Dodgers plan to have him in their lineup for every game to finish out the season.
Josue De Paula off Dodgers roster
Although De Paula impressed since joining the Dodgers as the corresponding move to Ohtani landing on the IL, he is now without a clear role. That’s especially true with the team’s plan to activate Dalton Rushing at some point in the coming days as well.
Teoscar Hernández and Kyle Tucker have both fared well at the plate over recent weeks, and De Paula’s outfield defense remains an area of needed improvement.
Josue De Paula postseason eligible
The Dodgers electing to option De Paula at this point leaves him in position to get recalled in time for Game 1 of the National League Division Series on Saturday, Oct. 3. It still remains mathematically possible for the Dodgers to fall into the Wild Card round but they enter play Wednesday with a magic number of one to clinch a first-round bye.
Typically, MLB roster rules require a player to be on the 40-man roster or 60-day injured list as of 9 a.m. PT on Sept. 1 in order to be eligible for the playoffs. However, technically any player in the organization by Aug. 31 can become eligible for the postseason by way of a petition to the Commissioner’s Office in order to replace someone on the injured list and who has already served the minimum amount of time required for activation.
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