Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani has been placed on the 15 day injured list retroactive to September 7th as he continues to deal with discomfort in his right arm. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters that the team hopes Ohtani can be activated when first eligible on September 23rd to give him a few games of action prior to the postseason beginning.
“It was more just really huddling up and saying, ‘Hey, how are you going to feel on Friday? How are you going to feel on Saturday?'” Roberts said. “Talking to the doctors and training staff, there was not much certainty that he’d be in a much better place. With that, just taking it off the table seemed like the best course of action.”
Ohtani was held out of Wednesday’s 14-1 win over the Cincinnati Reds, making it 6 of the last 7 games that he’s missed due to knee and arm issues. Team officials have downplayed the severity of the 32 year old’s injuries for some time now, and insist that the move is merely precautionary.
“If it were a postseason game tomorrow, he would be in the lineup,” Roberts said. “Now you’re talking about two weeks, 14 days. I feel that it’s that substantial. He’ll be in a much better place than he was today. Is it going to be 100%? Probably not. But I do think, with this time that we’re taking now, he’ll be in an adequate spot to finish the season and beyond.”
Ohtani is once again having a productive season both on the mound and at the plate, and is firmly in the NL MVP conversation once again. The 6’4″ two way star is currently hitting .277 with 30 home runs, 80 RBIs, and 89 runs scored while posting an 8-2 record with a 1.79 ERA and 95 Ks across 85.2IP.
In his absence, Los Angeles is calling up top prospect Josue De Paula who will serve as the team’s designated hitter for the time being. The 21 year old is currently slashing .303/.401/.547 with 27 home runs and 31 stolen bases in 124 games at Double-A and is widely considered one of the top outfield prospects in all of baseball.
Originally signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2022, many scouts believe that his bat is MLB ready right now. The only thing preventing him from being an everyday outfielder is the log jam of talent currently on the Dodgers roster which would limit his ability to receive regular at bats.
Los Ángeles is off on Thursday but will travel to Miami to open a 3 game series against the Marlins beginning on Friday. From there, the NL West leading team wraps up their seasons with sets against the Reds, Giants (x2), and Padres.
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