The Dodgers ended the 2024 regular season with baseball's best record, which means they are sitting out the Wild Card Series with a bye, awaiting the winner of the Braves-Padres series for an NLDS bout. As everyone looks ahead for the Dodgers, a big question the minds of the masses is whether or not Shohei Ohtani will pitch at all.
No one in the know is expecting Ohtani to work as a starter, despite the Dodgers' rotation having been ravaged by injuries all year. He had major elbow surgery last September. He has been throwing off a mound for weeks, though, so couldn't he throw an inning if they get to the World Series, for example?
The Dodgers don't appear willing to take that risk.
General manager Brandon Gomes told reporters Wednesday that Ohtani is unlikely to pitch at all this postseason (via MLB.com).
"I think it's no different than before," Gomes said. "We don't anticipate him pitching in the postseason."
Obviously, we could twist that if we wanted, right? Plans change. He didn't say Ohtani will absolutely, positively, definitely not pitch at all in 2024, after all. But this also tracks with team president Andrew Friedman's brush-off, when he said Ohtani on the mound is "not really an option."
Listen to the Dodgers executives. Put the idea out of your mind.
Ohtani should have plenty of impact on the offensive side anyway. He's likely the NL MVP in 2024, having hit .310/.390/.646 (190 OPS+) with 38 doubles, seven triples, 54 homers, 130 RBI, 134 runs, 59 steals and 9.2 WAR. He led the NL in runs, home runs, RBI, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS, OPS+ and WAR.
The Dodgers enter the playoffs with a veritable village on the injured list, including starters Clayton Kershaw, Tyler Glasnow, Gavin Stone and River Ryan. The playoff rotation will include Jack Flaherty, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Walker Buehler and likely Landon Knack in the fourth spot.
