The Los Angeles Dodgers held on for an 8-6 victory on Wednesday night to clinch a series win against the Pittsburgh Pirates, but in the process saw Justin Wrobleski and Shohei Ohtani both leave the game due to a respective injury.
Wrobleski was removed with two outs in the fifth inning because of a right hamstring contusion. Ohtani, who was pinch-hit for by Santiago Espinal in the seventh inning, exited because of left knee inflammation.
That’s the same knee Ohtani had surgery on in September 2019 to repair a bipartite patella, which is a rare congenital condition. Bipartite patella occurs when the two bones of the kneecap did not fuse together at birth.
Shohei Ohtani’s latest knee injury
Although the Dodgers removed Ohtani due to an official diagnosis of left knee inflammation, manager Dave Roberts reported the issue to be unrelated to his prior surgery and “more hamstring, versus knee.”
“It’s behind the knee, but I think it’s the attachment of the knee and hamstring,” Roberts said on SportsNet LA. He further added Ohtani had not been experiencing any trouble prior to Wednesday, and it was more discomfort than a sharp pain or pop in the knee.
“I think we tried to be smart about it,” Roberts said. “Talked to the trainer, and he said behind the knee, a little hamstring. So just wanted to be smart and not push it. I feel good about him being in there [Friday], but obviously with the travel tonight, we’ll just see how he comes in.”
Overall, Roberts said his level of concern is “not high.”
Including Friday, the Dodgers have six more games before their next off day. Even with some of the initial optimism, it would not be a surprise for Ohtani to be held out of the lineup for the series opener against the Chicago White Sox out of an abundance of caution.
Ohtani’s at-bats
Ohtani pitched 6.2 innings on Wednesday and hit a home run, then followed that up by going 2-for-2 with another homer and two walks prior to his early exit in the finale at PNC Park.
“Really good at-bats,” Roberts said. “Got robbed of a homer, took some walks, the balls he was hitting to the big part of the field, the homer that he hit, it was really good. Especially after a day he pitches, where he’s usually mentally and physically fatigued.
“He was really locked in tonight.”
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