The Los Angeles Dodgers have been a bit shaky of late and there is legitimate concern about their performance heading down the stretch. While the National League West isn’t quite in jeopardy yet, the addition of Tarik Skubal hasn’t done enough to elevate a rotation ravaged by injuries.
One big factor in the Dodgers’ rotation woes is Shohei Ohtani’s nagging injuries, which have kept him out of the rotation since July 3. While it would make sense for a potential shutdown to be in play, the Dodgers appear committed to having Ohtani work his way back into the starting rotation before the end of the season.
When Shohei Ohtani could return to the Dodgers rotation
Ohtani threw a bullpen session the other day as part of a process to get him back on the mound at some point. The Dodgers can take advantage of the Ohtani rules, which do not count him towards their limit of 13 pitchers on the active roster, and have him essentially rehab in the majors by functioning as an opener ahead of another starting pitcher while he rebuilds his stamina.
Pitching depth certainly is improving for the Dodgers, who just got Blake Snell back from the injured list recently and have Tyler Glasnow out on a rehab assignment as well. With Los Angeles recently indicating that All Star Justin Wrobelski will likely head to the bullpen once everyone is healthy, it is fair to question why exactly Ohtani needs to return to the mound.
|
Starting pitcher |
ERA |
|---|---|
|
Yoshinobu Yamamoto |
2.60 |
|
Tarik Skubal |
2.93 |
|
Shohei Ohtani |
1.79 |
|
Blake Snell |
3.16 (career) |
|
Justin Wrobleski |
3.56 |
|
Roki Sasaki |
4.46 |
|
Eric Lauer |
4.67 |
The above chart doesn’t take Tyler Glasnow into account, who could return in September as well. This begs the question: Do the Dodgers really need Ohtani to pitch?
Why the Dodgers shouldn’t have Shohei Ohtani return to pitching this year
The addition of Skubal means that the Dodgers could have a formidable playoff rotation even without Ohtani. Going with a foursome of Skubal, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Snell and Glasnow would give Los Angeles plenty of arms to win a playoff series, making the choice to get Ohtani back on the mound look more motivated to help him hold off Pete Crow-Armstrong in the MVP race than do what is actually best for the team.
It certainly seems as if the impact of playing both ways is wearing on Ohtani, whose offensive production is a bit down compared to what he has normally done for the Dodgers. Ohtani has also had a few games this year where he has not hit on the same day he has pitched, which has taken his valuable bat out of the lineup.
It sure felt as if the Dodgers were trying to get Ohtani a Cy Young Award early in the season, but his odds of claiming that prize are now gone as either Jacob Misiorowski or Cristopher Sanchez have strong numbers over a larger sample size. Winning three straight MVPs would be quite the achievement for Ohtani as well, but it shouldn’t come at the expense of what is best for the Dodgers right now.
The Dodgers have enough arms to comfortably get through the regular season, win their division and be ready for a World Series push. Humoring what appears to be a vanity project to get Ohtani an individual accolade is not smart and the sooner the Dodgers come to this realization the better their chances of three-peating will be.
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