The Shohei Ohtani injury situation took a turn for the worse this week and now the Los Angeles Dodgers are looking at being without with leadoff man for two weeks.
After delaying what in some regard appeared to be necessary, the Dodgers are relenting and putting Ohtani on the 15-day injured list. He will not travel with the team for their road trip, and the Dodgers are calling up top prospect Josue De Paula from Double-A Tulsa.
In addition to the high likelihood that Ohtani will not be available to pitch again this year, the Dodgers are contending with the fact that his left knee and right biceps injuries have affected him in the batter’s box more than ever.
The 32-year-old was not in the lineup for the series finale against the Cincinnati Reds, marking his sixth absence in the last seven games. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts revealed Ohtani’s latest absence was due to lingering effects from a swing he took during Monday’s game.
If there’s a silver lining to Ohtani going on the injured list, the Dodgers already are 6-0 without him and have a very favorable schedule the rest of the way.
However, the fact that Ohtani immediately suffered a setback after a four-game break is troubling. Roberts nevertheless is confident a stint on the injured list will provide Ohtani with ample time and an opportunity to reach an improved state.
“Let’s take the 15 days and get him reset, get him feeling better and know we still have a week of baseball games left,” Roberts said. “And then build him back up all the while during this 15-day stint to get the best of him for the postseason.”
Dodgers monitoring Freddie Freeman’s health
To add insult to injury, the Dodgers are also managing an injury with Freddie Freeman. He was not in lineup on Wednesday after serving as the designated hitter the night prior. It was his second missed game in the past six.
“Freddie, the last few days, his right knee has been bothering him. So just on the heels of an off day tomorrow, I talked to him, and the training staff, we felt it was best to give him a day so we could give him two days and see how he is on Friday,” Roberts explained.
The injury was the result of cumulative wear and tear rather than a single incident. The right knee discomfort is not thought to be as serious as Ohtani’s, and Roberts indicated there is “absolutely” no chance Freeman will be placed on the IL.
Roberts further believes the lingering knee trouble has at least partly affected Freeman at the plate as of late. Because of this, the Dodgers are debating whether to put him back in the lineup Friday or give him a little more time off.
“It’s a possibility, and it’s also a possibility we give him three days off to then get back and getting him ready optimally for the September run,” Roberts said.
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