Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander/designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (hip) left his start against the Cincinnati Reds in the fourth inning with cramping in his right hip. Ohtani told reporters after the game that the cramping began in the first inning. Despite that, he wound up throwing three innings of two-run ball with five hits allowed and four strikeouts against two walks before exiting with an athletic trainer. Ohtani stayed in as the DH and finished the night 0-for-5. The Dodgers haven't given a date for Ohtani's next start, but it's a relief that he won't miss any time on the mound as he continues building up in his return from 2023 Tommy John surgery. The hard-throwing Ohtani has totaled 15 innings over seven short starts and recorded a stellar 2.40 ERA with 17 strikeouts and five walks.

Los Angeles Dodgers two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani (cramps) left his start against the Cincinnati Reds early on Wednesday with cramps, the team announced. Ohtani walked off the mound in the middle of an at-bat with an athletic trainer after throwing six straight balls, two of which were wild pitches. There was initial concern that Ohtani suffered a serious injury, but the three-time MVP was able to stay in at designated hitter. After undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2023, Ohtani missed all of 2024 as a pitcher. The right-hander made his return to the mound June 16 and has since been effective over seven outings, though he hasn't gotten more than nine outs in any of his appearances. Wednesday's start was the first time he pitched into the fourth inning this year. Ohtani totaled three innings on a season-high 51 pitches (32 strikes) and allowed two runs on five hits with 4:2 K:BB. It's unclear when he'll make his next start.

Los Angeles Dodgers two-way star Shohei Ohtani is reportedly aiming to reach four innings in his next few starts as he continues to build up his workload. The 31-year-old has yet to surpass three innings this season as he works his way back from the second Tommy John surgery of his career. Ohtani has been sharp in limited action, posting a 1.50 ERA and 1.00 WHIP over 12 innings. If he continues trending upward on the mound while maintaining his elite .998 OPS at the plate, the 2025 NL MVP race could quickly shift back in his favor as the season heats up.

Los Angeles Dodgers two-way sensation Shohei Ohtani will make his next start as a pitcher on July 30 against the Cincinnati Reds, manager Dave Roberts said. The Dodgers are hoping to get a season-high four innings from the right-hander, who continues a gradual buildup in his return to pitching from 2023 Tommy John surgery. The flamethrowing Ohtani has recorded a brilliant 1.50 ERA with a 1.00 WHIP and 13:3 K:BB over six short starts and 12 innings. He totaled three frames in each of his previous two outings. As a hitter, Ohtani has continued to dazzle. The 31-year-old is on a five-game home run streak, giving him an NL-high 37 over 465 plate appearances. Ohtani is also slashing a tremendous .273/.377/.620 with 70 RBI, a league-leading 97 runs scored, and 13 stolen bases.

Los Angeles Dodgers two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani will make his next start on the mound in Monday's series opener against the visiting Minnesota Twins, according to manager Dave Roberts. Ohtani will be followed by right-hander Dustin May, who will essentially serve as the bulk reliever as the Dodgers continue to ease Ohtani back into the starting rotation. Right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto will pitch in Game 2 of the series against the Twins on Tuesday. Ohtani didn't make his pitching debut with the Dodgers until June 16 this year after having Tommy John surgery on his right elbow. The 31-year-old went an inning each his first two outings, two innings each his next two outings and then advanced to three innings his last time out on July 12. He has allowed only one earned run in nine innings with 10 K's and two walks, but fantasy managers should expect him to be limited to three innings again on Monday.

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani's next start on the mound will come on Saturday in San Francisco against the division-rival Giants. However, Ohtani will serve as the "opener" again, with right-hander Emmet Sheehan serving as the bulk reliever. Ohtani is slowly building up his pitch counts since making his debut as a pitcher this year on June 16, but he's only thrown a total of six innings in four "starts" for L.A. The 31-year-old Japanese sensation went an inning each in his first two appearances before ramping up to two innings apiece in his last two outings versus the Royals and Astros. Ohtani has been solid so far on the mound, only allowing one earned run while walking one and striking out six in six innings, but until he's more stretched out, he won't be a great lineup option for fantasy managers as a pitcher.

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher/designated hitter Shohei Ohtani worked two effective shutout innings as the opener on Saturday night against the Astros. He allowed just one hit and picked up three strikeouts in two innings while working on his 31st birthday. He also went 1-for-4 with a walk in the leadoff spot. His hit was a single to lead off the ninth inning and brought the tying run to the plate, but the Dodgers couldn't rally and dropped their second straight game to the Astros. Ohtani threw 31 pitches, a new season-high, and he'll continue to try and ramp up his workload headed into the second half of the season. He has a 1.50 ERA and 0.83 WHIP, allowing one run on four hits with six strikeouts in six innings since returning from elbow surgery. He is still not pitching long enough to make much of a fantasy impact as a pitcher, but he could get one more outing on the mound before the All-Star break when the Dodgers visit the Giants next weekend.

Los Angeles Dodgers two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani's next start as a pitcher is scheduled for Saturday against the Houston Astros, according to manager Dave Roberts. Ohtani will be making his fourth start of the year for the Dodgers on the mound. In his three starts against the San Diego Padres, Washington Nationals and Kansas City Royals, the 30-year-od has allowed an earned run on three hits while walking one and striking out three in just four innings. The Japanese hurler went a season-high two frames his last time out while throwing 27 pitches. While Ohtani is expected to continue increasing his workload, he'll essentially be an opener once again this weekend against Houston with Justin Wrobleski working behind him in a bulk-relief role for the Blue. Ohtani just isn't stretched out enough to be a worthwhile fantasy option as a starting pitcher.

Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani took the mound as the opener for Saturday's game against the Kansas City Royals. Ohtani tossed two scoreless innings, allowing one hit, one walk, and striking out one batter in the no-decision. The right-hander was able to touch 102 mph on his fastball, and he threw 20-of-27 total pitches for strikes. The plan was always for Ohtani to be done after two innings as the Dodgers are going to slowly ramp him up. He also went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts at the plate in this one. The pitcher version of Ohtani might not offer solid fantasy value until a little later in the season.

Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani gave his team a big lift during Friday's game against the Kansas City Royals. Ohtani got the fun started early with a leadoff home run off left-hander Noah Cameron in the first inning. He would later hit an RBI-triple in the fifth inning. Ohtani now has seven hits over his last five games. He finished this game 2-for-3 with a home run, triple, two RBI, two runs scored, and a walk in the win. This was Ohtani's 29th blast of the season, which puts him on pace to hit nearly 60 long balls this season.

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts confirmed Thursday that two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani will start as a pitcher Saturday in Kansas City. Ohtani will make his third start on the mound on Saturday as the Dodgers take on the Kansas City Royals. To this point, he has logged one inning in each of his first two starts, and in those two innings combined, he has allowed one earned run, two hits, and has struck out two batters. At this point, it's still unclear as to whether or not the Dodgers will let Ohtani throw more than one inning, but it's encouraging to see him continue to take the mound weekly. Ohtani has served as the designated hitter leadoff batter in both games he's pitched in so far, so this shouldn't impact him being in the lineup as a hitter.

Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani clubbed his National League-leading 28th home run in a 3-1 victory over the Colorado Rockies on Thursday. Ohtani gave the Dodgers some late insurance in a close game with a 419-foot solo blast in the top of the seventh inning against right-hander Tyler Kinley. That was Ohtani's only hit, but he also drew a walk in a 1-for-3 showing. Having homered in three of his past four games, the 30-year-old superstar is slashing an exemplary .291/.392/.633 with 52 RBI, a league-best 80 runs, and 11 steals through 373 plate appearances.

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said he wanted to leave things "open-ended" as far as when right-hander Shohei Ohtani will make his next start, but The Athletic's Fabian Ardaya writes that everything lines up for Ohtani to toe the rubber next in Kansas City against the Royals this Saturday. The 30-year-old Japanese two-way superstar made his pitching debut for L.A. on June 16 against the San Diego Padres and allowed a run in just an inning of work before throwing a shutout inning with two strikeouts in his second start on Sunday versus the Washington Nationals. Ohtani will slowly build up his pitch count as he makes his way back from Tommy John surgery on his right elbow in September of 2023, but he won't go deep enough into his third start of the year against the Royals to make it worth using him as a pitcher in fantasy lineups.

Shohei Ohtani's two-way talents were on full display in the Los Angeles Dodgers' 13-7 win over the Washington Nationals on Sunday. On the pitching side, the right-hander opened the game for the Dodgers and threw a scoreless first inning with two strikeouts. One hitter reached on an error, but Ohtani otherwise locked down the top of the Nationals' lineup in his second appearance as a pitcher since returning from 2023 Tommy John surgery. Offensively, Ohtani was his typical electrifying self. The three-time MVP filled the box score with a triple, a homer, five RBI, three runs scored, and a walk in a 2-for-4 afternoon. He's now slashing a tremendous .291/.390/.624 with 26 HRs, 49 RBI, 76 runs, and 11 steals over 359 plate appearances.

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher/designated hitter Shohei Ohtani will make his second start of the season on Sunday against the Nationals, the team announced early on Thursday morning. Ohtani won the National League MVP last year in his first year for the Dodgers, even though he never threw a pitch, but this year, the two-way sensation has been working his way back to his spot in the starting rotation after his second Tommy John surgery. The 30-year-old threw 28 pitches in his season debut on Monday night against the Padres in just one inning of work. His stuff looked good, even though he gave up two hits and a run while struggling with some control issues. He'll continue to ramp up but still be very limited in his start on Sunday, probably only pitching an inning or two as he continues his recovery.

Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Shohei Ohtani could make his second start of the season Saturday or Sunday against the Washington Nationals, manager Dave Roberts said. After undergoing Tommy John surgery in September 2023, Ohtani made a long-awaited return to pitching in the Dodgers' 6-3 win over the San Diego Padres on Monday. The 30-year-old served as the Dodgers' opener and threw 28 pitches over one inning, allowing one run on two hits with no strikeouts or walks. Ohtani's command was understandably shaky after such a long layoff, but his velocity topped out at 100.2 mph.

Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher/designated hitter Shohei Ohtani made his first appearance on the mound for the Dodgers on Monday night in Los Angeles, and he also delivered two hits and two RBI as the leadoff hitter in the team's 6-3 victory. He gave up two hits and one run in a 28-pitch first inning. He settled down after back-to-back singles and a sacrifice fly to get out of the inning, but did not have any strikeouts. At the plate, he doubled to drive in a run in the third inning to tie the game at 1-1 and added an RBI single in the fourth inning to finish 2-for-4 with two RBI and a walk. Ohtani is hitting an even .300 with 25 homers, 11 stolen bases, and 43 RBI in his 71 games this season. He'll continue to progress in his throwing program to be able to go deeper into games, while also remaining a key part of the Dodgers' potent lineup. The two-way superstar is officially back to both pitching and hitting, and it will be exciting to watch the many ways he contributes to the Dodgers as they chase the NL West pennant and ultimately try to defend their World Series title.

Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Shohei Ohtani (elbow) is finally returning to a major league mound. The Dodgers announced that he will serve as their starting pitcher Monday against the San Diego Padres. Manager Dave Roberts indicated Sunday that Ohtani will work as an opener, per Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic. It'll be Ohtani's first action as a pitcher since August 2023. He underwent Tommy John surgery that September and has been on the mend since. The two-way superstar has continued to thrive as a hitter, even winning his third MVP award last year, and could now help the Dodgers' injury-ravaged pitching staff. Ohtani fared great on the mound with a 3.01 ERA, 11.36 K/9, and 3.23 BB/9 in 481 2/3 innings as a member of the Los Angeles Angels from 2018-23. However, after almost two full years away from pitching, the Dodgers will surely ease him back into the role.

Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani has been off to a slow start in June but came ready to swing the bat on Saturday. Ohtani kicked off the game with a leadoff home run in the first inning. He would later hit another solo home run in the sixth inning. Ohtani finished the night 2-for-3 with two homers, two RBI, and two walks in the win. Ohtani currently leads the National League in homers and trails only American League sluggers Aaron Judge and Cal Raleigh. Ohtani is slashing .290/.385/.638 with 25 homers, 41 RBI, and 11 stolen bases in 69 games.

Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander Shohei Ohtani (elbow) is making enough progress in his recovery from 2023 Tommy John surgery that he could pitch sooner than expected, manager Dave Roberts announced. Roberts said that the chances of Ohtani pitching before his post-All-Star break timeline are "north of zero," per Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic. Both Roberts and pitching coach Mark Prior came away encouraged from Ohtani's three-inning simulated game on Tuesday. Ohtani hasn't taken a major league mound since August 2023, but the two-way superstar has continued to make an enormous impact as a hitter. The Los Angeles Times' Jack Harris reported on Tuesday that Ohtani threw 44 pitches over three simulated innings, including 23 in his last inning, before the game at Petco Park against the Padres. He allowed a ground-ball single, one walk and had six strikeouts while inducing 15 total whiffs against a few minor-league hitters.