Ohtani was unanimously named the 2024 National League Most Value Player on Thursday, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.
In the first year of his record setting contract with the Dodgers, Ohtani won his first MVP award in the National League unanimously. Having won two MVPs with the Angels prior, the superstar has now won an MVP in three of the last four seasons. He did so without throwing a pitch for the entirety of the 2024 season and became the first designated hitter to win the award. The 30-year-old was able to accomplish this feat with just his bat by notching up the first ever 50-50 season and falling just .004 shy of a Triple Crown. In search of his fourth MVP in 2025, he will be back on the mound. While speaking with the media after receiving the award, Ohtani noted that it is his goal to be cleared to pitch by Opening Day, but that both he and the Dodgers will take things cautiously, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports.
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Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani: Surgery likely to delay pitching
Rotowire
Ohtani's left shoulder surgery is likely to delay his pitching debut for the Dodgers, Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times reports.
Ohtani underwent surgery Tuesday to repair a labrum tear in his left (non-throwing) shoulder, an injury he suffered during Game 2 of the World Series. While the expectation is that he will be ready to serve as a designated hitter during spring training and Opening Day, the timetable for Ohtani's first start on the mound for the Dodgers looks cloudy. The team elected to pause Ohtani's throwing program during the playoffs as he comes back from Tommy John surgery so as to not overtax him, and now the shoulder surgery will further delay his throwing program indefinitely. The Dodgers have a two-game series versus the Cubs in Japan from March 18-19 and then have their domestic opener against the Tigers on March 27. GM Brandon Gomes this week didn't rule out Ohtani being ready to pitch by the domestic opener, but Gomes "did not cast an optimistic picture of that possibility," per Harris. Ohtani was going to have workload restrictions in place on the mound in his first year back from Tommy John surgery anyway, so in that respect the delay isn't a huge deal. However, the situation creates an air of uncertainty with the two-way superstar's status. More clarity on Ohtani's situation should be available later in the offseason and into spring training.
Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani: Undergoes surgery on shoulder
Rotowire
Ohtani underwent surgery Tuesday to repair a labrum tear in his left shoulder, Alden Gonzalez of ESPN.com reports.
Ohtani's injury, which he suffered in Game 2 of the World Series on Oct. 26, was initially described as a slight dislocation of his left shoulder. The labrum tear was a result of the dislocation, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports. After suffering the injury, the NL MVP frontrunner recorded just one hit across 11 at-bats in the final three games of the series. The Dodgers expect he will be ready for spring training.
