Shohei Ohtani left his seventh start as a pitcher this season with cause for concern, but he finished the game with a sense of relief.
The Los Angeles Dodgers’ star pitched into the fourth inning Wednesday for the first time this season as he slowly ramps up in his return from 2023 UCL surgery, but he exited the game mid-plate appearance after throwing six straight balls, including two wild pitches, against the Cincinnati Reds.
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The Dodgers later announced that he left the mound, but not the game, due to cramps.
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Ohtani didn’t appear to be in pain, but he was clearly frustrated after walking Tyler Stephenson on four pitches and falling behind 2-0 against Spencer Steer. The Reds playing Daniel Powter’s “Bad Day” probably didn’t help.
Ohtani was replaced on the mound by reliever Anthony Banda and didn’t seem to be receiving any attention when next shown in the Dodgers dugout. His final line: 3+ innings, 5 hits, 2 earned runs, 2 walks, 4 strikeouts and a season-high 51 pitches.
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The Dodgers were clearly worried about something, but not enough to stop Ohtani from staying in the game as a hitter. He took his next at-bat in the sixth inning with no apparent issue. SportsNetLA reported that Ohtani and the Dodgers’ staff had a quick meeting in the clubhouse between innings, but he returned to the dugout with no apparent worries.
Ohtani said after the game that he began feeling the cramps in his right hip in the first inning but attempted to pitch through it until it started impacting his delivery, according to The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya.
After playing 2024 exclusively as a designated hitter, Ohtani made his debut as a Dodgers pitcher in June as a single-inning opener and has gradually increased his workload since then. He didn’t throw a second inning until his third start and didn’t reach the third inning until his fifth start. This time, he made it into the fourth inning.
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The Dodgers have seemingly been as cautious with Ohtani as possible, given that even a minor setback on the mound could cost them their most valuable player and biggest draw for however long it takes him to get right.
With the team still in first in the NL West, its two priorities are a) keeping Ohtani’s MVP-level bat in the lineup and b) having him ready to make a full start in the postseason, two months from now.
