At 4-0, the Los Angeles Dodgers are off to the best start by a defending World Series champion since the Detroit Tigers won their first six games in 1985. The Dodgers have done that without having Shohei Ohtani the pitcher. Ohtani the hitter is 6 for 16 (.375) with a double and two home runs through four games.
Ohtani the pitcher is working his way back from his September 2023 elbow surgery. On Saturday, he returned to the mound and threw his first bullpen session since Feb. 25. Ohtani hit pause on his mound work in spring training to focus on his preparation as a hitter, but now that the regular season is underway, he’s resumed working on his pitching.
Ohtani is still fairly early in his throwing progression and his return to game action is not imminent. Generally speaking, it’s a six-week progression from throwing bullpens to facing hitters to pitching in rehab games to pitching in major league games. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts confirmed Ohtani’s return to the mound in a game is still “a ways away.”
“It’s gonna be a while,” Roberts said Saturday, adding he believed Ohtani was scheduled to throw 25-30 pitches in the bullpen. “I think you start with the natural progression of a bullpen, then you’ve kinda gotta mix in different pitches, to then face hitters again. It’s a start up again. I don’t have a timeline, I don’t think anyone does, but we’re a ways away.”
The Dodgers are understandably being cautious with Ohtani’s rehab. They don’t want to risk a setback that not only delays his return to the mound, but also causes him to miss time as a hitter. The Dodgers have nine more years and close to $700 million invested in Ohtani — they want him back pitching in games, for sure, but the big picture is the priority.
Ohtani is hardly the only Dodgers pitcher rehabbing an injury and currently unable to pitch in games. Here is the team’s rotation depth chart:
RHP Shohei Ohtani(rehabbing from elbow surgery)- LHP Blake Snell
- RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto
- RHP Tyler Glasnow
- RHP Roki Sasaki
- RHP Dustin May
LHP Clayton Kershaw(rehabbing from knee and toe surgery)RHP Tony Gonsolin(out with back issue)RHP Gavin Stone(will miss 2025 with shoulder surgery)RHP Emmet Sheehan(will miss most of 2025 with Tommy John surgery)RHP River Ryan(will miss 2025 with Tommy John surgery)- RHP Landon Knack
- RHP Bobby Miller
- LHP Justin Wrobleski
Knack, Miller, and Wrobleski would slot into the starting rotation for more than a few teams around the league. For the Dodgers, they are depth guys who can provide innings while Gonsolin, Kershaw, and Ohtani work their way back to full health.
In 2023, the last time he pitched, Ohtani threw 132 innings with a 3.14 ERA and 167 strikeouts. On a per-inning basis, Ohtani was as good as just about any pitcher in the game from 2021-23. He is also one of the best hitters in the world. Last season he became the first 50/50 player in history en route to winning his third MVP award.
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