Shohei Ohtani made his long-awaited return to the mound for the Los Angeles Dodgers last season following a two-and-a-half-year rehab process. The two-way superstar was limited to just 47 regular season innings in 2025, but has his sights set on winning some major hardware this season.
Despite all the success he has enjoyed over the past two seasons, Ohtani still has something he wants to prove in 2026. The 31-year-old has been very open about his love for pitching throughout his career, and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts thinks it’s fair to say he wants to prove that he’s the best pitcher in the league this season.
“I think he’s already proven that he’s the best player, you could argue that’s ever played the game, best baseball player in totality,” Roberts said. “But I do think that he sees himself as a baseball player, yes, but then when he’s pitching, he sees himself solely as a pitcher, and he wants to be the best pitcher, yes.”
Four MVP awards, five straight All-Star selections and countless other individual accolades he has earned in his eight-year career won’t be enough until he becomes the first Japanese-born player to win a Cy Young Award.
“It does seem absurd,” Roberts said. “But I think if anyone can manage the designated hitter role, be as productive as he’s been and then still chase that elusive Cy Young for a Japanese pitcher, I think that he can do it.
“I think for him, he is definitely first and foremost, he’s shown that he’s team-driven. But also, there’s some individual things that he certainly wants to achieve, which is a good thing.”
The most significant obstacle Ohtani will have to overcome to achieve his goal will be making enough starts and throwing enough innings.
The 166 innings he threw in 2022 were a career-high by a significant margin. He’s had two other seasons of around 130 innings in 2021 and 2023, but has not thrown many innings outside of those seasons due to injury.
“I think number one is obviously health. And if he’s healthy and making his starts, however many that’ll be, then I think it’s feasible,” Roberts said.
“I do think that we’ve got some pitchers in our rotation that are going to be a part of that conversation all year long. But I think it’s a tangible for him for sure.”
Dodgers pitching plan for Shohei Ohtani is ‘fluid’
The Dodgers are likely going to remain more cautious than not with Ohtani in 2026, but they also plan to adjust based on how he’s feeling.
It’s unclear whether the Dodgers have a set innings plan for Ohtani this season, but they still plan to read and react to his starts.
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