At some point in the 2025 baseball season, Shohei Ohtani is expected to be a two-way player again.
When that is, though, is still not clear.
Ohtani spoke at DodgerFest in Los Angeles about the upcoming season and told reporters that he does not have an exact date yet, and it will all depend on how his bullpens go.
The three-time MVP underwent elbow surgery for a torn UCL in 2023 that kept him from pitching entirely during the World Series-winning campaign.
He also sustained a torn labrum in his left shoulder during a stolen base attempt against the Yankees in the World Series that also required surgery.
Ohtani, per the Los Angeles Times, said everything is “on schedule” in terms of his recovery from the shoulder issue.
Manager Dave Roberts told reporters that Ohtani coming back to the mound in May “sounds about right,” according to The Athletic.
Even without toeing the slab last year, Ohtani was an impressive force for Los Angeles.
He more than lived up to the 10-year, $700 million contract in year one, hitting .310/.390/1.036 all while becoming the first player in MLB history to join the 50-homer, 50-steal club.
He led the league in WAR (according to Baseball Reference) at 9.2.
It all culminated in his first-ever National League MVP, finishing ahead of the Mets’ Francisco Lindor.
The last time he pitched, with the Angels in 2023, Ohtani had a 3.14 ERA with 167 strikeouts in 133 innings.
Even without Ohtani, a loaded Dodgers rotation already includes additions Blake Snell and Roki Sasaki and returnees Tyler Glasnow, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Dustin May and Tony Gonsolin.
