LOS ANGELES (AP) — Shohei Ohtani’s chances of taking the mound at this year’s All-Star Game on July 14 appear slim, following a schedule change made by the Los Angeles Dodgers to protect his arm.
Ohtani, who excels both as a pitcher and a hitter, had been making his starts primarily on Wednesdays. However, the Dodgers pushed his outing back to Friday this week as part of an effort to manage his workload during a demanding stretch of 13 games in 13 days.
When asked whether that change effectively ruled out an All-Star pitching appearance, manager Dave Roberts offered a candid assessment on Friday: “I haven’t formally said it, but if you just kind of do the math, it would be hard to imagine. But I don’t have to make that decision quite yet.”
Roberts is set to lead the National League squad at the All-Star Game in Philadelphia.
Ohtani is already locked into the starting lineup as the designated hitter. He topped all vote-getters in the first round of fan balloting, drawing 3,341,257 votes overall.
While the right-hander is also a strong contender for a spot on the NL pitching staff, Philadelphia left-hander Cristopher Sánchez appears to be the most likely starting pitcher given the home-field setting. Milwaukee’s Jacob Misiorowski leads all of baseball with a 1.45 ERA, but his turn in the Brewers’ rotation falls two days before the All-Star Game, which would leave him unavailable for the contest.
Heading into Friday night’s start against San Diego, Ohtani ranked second in the majors with a 1.58 ERA.
After Friday’s outing, Ohtani is slated for one more regular-season start before the break — on July 10 at home against Arizona. That would leave his arm with just three days of rest before the All-Star Game, a timeline the Dodgers appear unwilling to risk.
Roberts also acknowledged that Ohtani hasn’t been at his sharpest lately. “Shohei hasn’t had his best stuff recently and that’s the truth,” the manager said. “The fastball command hasn’t been what it was earlier in the season, the sweeper hasn’t been the same.”
Ohtani has been dealing with soreness in his left knee as well as a blister on the middle finger of his pitching hand. Still, Roberts offered some encouragement before Friday’s game: “He feels good, the body feels good. The knee feels as good as it’s felt in quite some time, so that’s encouraging.”
