Shohei Ohtani appears to be making progress in his quest to return to the field before the end of the regular season.
The Dodgers star hit off a tee on Tuesday in Los Angeles, manager Dave Roberts confirmed before the team’s game with the Cincinnati Reds in Ohio. Ohtani is currently on the 15-day injured list while dealing with right biceps inflammation. Tuesday’s swings were the first that he’s taken since he landed on the IL on Sept. 8.
“Shohei hit off the tee and felt good, too,” Roberts said, via The Associated Press. “Don’t know what’s in store for tomorrow, but I know that there’s going to be a consistent build-up. Don’t know when the time of return to play is, but today was positive, and hopefully we can just keep building towards that.”
Ohtani landed on the IL earlier this month after struggling to return from various injuries, including a knee issue that forced him to stop pitching in early July. Ohtani even received a lubricant injection in the joint during the All-Star break. He revealed the biceps issue in late July, but that was downplayed compared to the knee injury.
But Ohtani struggled to remain on the field for the Dodgers in the designated hitter slot, and he went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts in a walk in his final appearance before the Dodgers finally placed him on IL. While he is not expected to pitch again the rest of the season, he still had to land on the 15-day IL instead of the 10-day IL, as he has the two-way player designation.
Ohtani will be eligible to return for the Dodgers on Sept. 23 at the earliest. At that point, the Dodgers will have just five games left on their regular-season schedule. They entered Tuesday’s contest with the Reds with a 91-59 record, good for a nine-game lead in the NL West race, and they have already clinched a playoff spot.
That’s a short timeline to get Ohtani reps before the postseason begins, but Roberts is hopeful.
“Whether it happens or not is to be determined, but I do expect him to be back to play in some regular season games,” Roberts said. “I don’t know how many.”
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