The Los Angeles Dodgers will try to avoid getting swept by the St. Louis Cardinals in Thursday night’s ballgame.
The Dodgers lost the first two games of the series. But superstar designated hitter Shohei Ohtani looked uncomfortable in Wednesday’s 8-6 loss.
Ohtani went 0-for-4 with 4 strikeouts in last night’s ballgame and is 1-for-6 in the series.
The Dodgers’ star player will not be in the starting lineup for Thursday’s series finale.
Dave Roberts Provides Shohei Ohtani Injury Update
After Wednesday’s loss, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters that he noticed Ohtani looked off physically.
The Dodgers manager decided to give Ohtani the day off on Thursday. Center fielder Tommy Edman will hit leadoff. Alex Call will be the designated hitter.
“Shohei Ohtani’s health is ‘a day-to-day’ situation, Dave Roberts said. His availability off the bench tonight and tomorrow will depend on further conversations. Roberts didn’t want to speculate on the possibility Ohtani hits the IL,” Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reported.
Ardaya additionally wrote on X: “Dave Roberts still called the IL ‘unlikely’ for Shohei Ohtani, who reported biceps and neck discomfort last night. The knee is still an issue. Roberts said it’s a matter of the symptoms not improving rather than getting worse.”
Shohei Ohtani This Season
Ohtani was utilized as both a pitcher and hitter to start the season. But Ohtani has not made a start for the Dodgers since Jul. 3 due to a nagging knee injury.
But he was extremely effective in his 14 starts on the mound. The right-handed pitcher posted an 8-2 record and 1.79 ERA. He recorded 95 strikeouts in 85 2/3 innings.
While the left-handed hitter is putting up another monster season at the plate, the discomfort might be creeping up on him.
Ohtani has 5 hits in 39 at-bats (.128 batting average) in his last 10 games. He has 16 strikeouts over that time and has not recorded an RBI.
For the season, Ohtani has 30 home runs and 80 RBIs.
Social Media Reactions to Shohei Ohtani Health Status
Here are some social media reactions after Dave Roberts described Ohtani’s health status as “day-to-day” and that it is “unlikely” he will go on the IL.
Doug McKain: “Shohei Ohtani does not look like himself at all right now. I’ve said this for months, pitching injured was going to lead to a decline in his bat. Shut him down from pitching. Focus on getting as healthy as possible for October. They need his offense.”
Ben Verlander: “Shohei Ohtani is not ok. June 3rd he injured his knee and it hasn’t recovered since. Now it’s affecting his offense. 7 for his last 51 with 20 Ks He’s hurt. And it might be time to give him a rest.”
Dan Clark: “Knee. Neck. Bicep. Unfortunately, the physical load and strain of being a two-way player for so long may have caught up to Shohei Ohtani.”
Dodgers’ Dave Roberts Shares Shohei Ohtani Injury Update