Shohei Ohtani's return to the mound "intentionally" delayed by Dodgers, says MLB analyst

MLB: Los Angeles Dodgers at Philadelphia Phillies - Source: Imagn — Shohei Ohtani's return to the mound "intentionally" delayed by Dodgers - Source: Imagn

Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani continues in his role as a designated hitter for the NL West team after a historic major league campaign last year.

The Japanese phenom is slated to return to the mound later this year, resuming his two-way role in MLB. However, according to MLB analyst Ken Rosenthal, the Dodgers are intentionally delaying Shohei Ohtani's pitching return.

Rosenthal reported that the reigning World Series winners are delaying Ohtani's return, taking precautions with his arm as they want the two-way star healthy to pitch in the postseason.

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Shohei Ohtani underwent right elbow surgery in September 2023 and has not pitched since. He has been edging closer to a return after starting pitching rehab last season.

Ohtani's pitching return got another boost this week as the three-time MVP threw a 26-pitch bullpen session before Saturday's game against the Philadelphia Phillies.

Dave Roberts reflects on Shohei Ohtani's bullpen session

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts reflected on Ohtani's second bullpen session since returning from Tokyo.

“It’s a week, but then there’s also the one in between, where he touches the mound on a Thursday,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “And I think it’s just more trying to keep him on a similar seven-day program, and what the schedule would look (like) going out, and build from there.”

Ohtani's pitching sessions were stopped by the Dodgers in late February. It was in line with the team's plans of focusing on his hitting ahead of their Tokyo Series against the Chicago Cubs.

Following his return from Japan, Shohei Ohtani threw his first bullpen session on March 29.

About the author

Chaitanya Prakash is an editor who covers US Sports at Sportskeeda. His first brush with sportswriting was in 2012 when the greatest football manager of all time, Sir Alex Ferguson, bid farewell to the beautiful game.

Although having started out professionally as a cricket writer in 2022, Chaitanya's curiosity and indiscriminate interest in all sports in general eventually introduced him to America's favorite pastime.

While Chaitanya's favorite player from the current crop is the dynamic Venezuelan Ronald Acuna Jr., his all-time favorite, however, is Pedro Martinez, for his self-belief and consistency. He also rates Jose Bautista's iconic bat flip in 2015 as his favorite moment in baseball history.

Chaitanya specializes in reporting on technical aspects of the game or analyzing patterns behind specific plays. He also likes pondering over players' self-assessments following the conclusion of a game as it helps him get an idea of how they think about the sport in general.

When not cheering for his favorites across sports, Chaitanya likes being transported to the past through a good war documentary or a historical documentary in general.

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Edited by Chaitanya Prakash