Shohei Ohtani showed no signs of being plagued by the right biceps issue he has been dealing with in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ walk-off win over the Colorado Rockies on Monday.
The two-way star went 3-for-4 with a home run, walk and four RBI as the Dodgers earned an 8-7 victory in their first extra-innings game of the season.
It was the second consecutive game Ohtani played in since missing a Fourth of July matchup against the San Diego Padres. While the right bicep issue isn’t entirely past him yet, he continues to make good progress.
“Yeah, biceps good,” manager Dave Roberts said after the Dodgers’ win. “Tonight was the first time in a while that he really looked like Shohei. Took a cutter, which was actually a pretty good pitch, for the homer, and then lines a ball with the infield drawn in, and then gets another hit.
“So, yeah, tonight looked more like Shohei, and even his out in the first inning was a rocket to the center fielder.”
Ohtani’s right bicep has responded well to treatment, which was also the case when he experienced some discomfort earlier this season. While things appear to be trending in the right direction, the Dodgers will continue exercising caution with Ohtani.
“Continue to monitor, but from the training stuff, there’s no kind of remnants, anything from that sensation, that feeling he had before. So he feels back to normal,” Roberts said.
Shohei Ohtani missing next pitching start?
While Ohtani has returned to his designated hitter duties, there remains some uncertainty over whether or not he’ll start on the mound Friday against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
“We don’t need to make that decision today, tomorrow, the next day,” Roberts said earlier this week. “We have time. I think for us, it’s more of reading and reacting to how he feels.”
The Dodgers could potentially push back Ohtani’s start to Saturday or Sunday, but if he takes the mound in the finale of the Diamondbacks series, that would officially rule him out from being eligible to pitch in the 2026 MLB All-Star Game at Citizens Bank Park.
That doesn’t appear to be a likely scenario anyway, as Roberts has acknowledged he isn’t expected to start the annual exhibition.
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