Los Angeles Dodgers Designated Hitter Shohei Ohtani was held out of the lineup on Sunday due to what the Dodgers call “lower back tightness.” Ohtani complained about his back in the game against the San Diego Padres on Saturday night.
Dodgers Manager Dave Roberts said it happened sometime in the seventh inning, and he doesn’t believe the injury is serious.
“Right now, it’s [the injury] minimal, precautionary for sure,” Roberts said. “His back tightened up, so it was just one of those things that I got word before his fourth at-bat…so being up 5-0, we didn’t want to push it.”
How long will Shohei Ohtani be sidelined?
Ohtani Is Still Recovering From Second Tommy John
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The Dodgers media relations department says Ohtani declined to talk with the media after going 0-of-3 with a walk on Saturday night. He is still in a rehabilitation program for his right elbow injury. He had surgery this past offseason on his ulnar collateral ligament, commonly called Tommy John Surgery for athletes.
He Is on an every-other-day throwing program that he started late in March so he could return to pitching in 2025. This was his second Tommy John Surgery. He had his first on the elbow in 2018. After that surgery, Ohtani did not pitch in 2019 and for most of the 2020 season. He returned to the mound full-time in the 2021 season.
Report: Ohtani Would Be Willing To Stop Pitching
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What?? Veteran baseball writer Bob Nightengale writes in today’s USA Today that if the Dodgers ask Shohei Ohtani to give up pitching, he would be open to the idea. Nightengale said he spoke to “two persons familiar with Ohtani’s thinking.”
Nightengale also reports, “Those close to him say that he doesn’t have the same passion for pitching as hitting. He does both simply because he can do it.” This is all just speculation. The Dodgers have not asked Shohei to give up pitching, and Ohtani has never said he is more passionate about hitting than pitching.
Shohei Is Living Up To His Reputation In LA
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Ohtani’s injury does not affect his ability to swing the bat. He’s had an incredible start to the year. He is hitting .352 (second in baseball) with 11 home runs and 27 RBI. He also ranks first in Major League Baseball in hits (56), OPS (1.090), extra-base hits (27), and total bases (106).
The Dodgers didn’t sign Shohei Ohtani only for his playing ability, as good as it is. He signed the richest contract in sports history in December. His contract was for years for $700 million, but the Dodgers are getting some of that money back. Sports Illustrated’s Tom Verducci wrote that Ohtani “can return as much as $25 million a year in ancillary income and brand value, according to the owner of a rival team.”
Shohei Ohtani truly is a worldwide superstar.
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Bradley Tachco is a career journalist. I spent 12+ years at CNN as a writer and producer. My sports are the NHL, MLB, and NFL. My goal: unique content. And my teams are the Buffalo Sabres, Buffalo Bills (yes, I’m a masochist), and the Los Angeles Dodgers. I have been a Dodgers fan since I was old enough to think. I have gone through decades of despair with all three franchises. You can follow Bradley on X @p09691
