Ohtani feeling – After treatment on a biceps issue, Shohei Ohtani said he was feeling “considerably better” on Saturday, with Dodgers manager Dave Roberts holding out hope for a return to the lineup Sunday against the Padres’ finale.
Shohei Ohtani walked into Saturday feeling “considerably better. ” after receiving some treatment on his biceps. and the Dodgers’ clubhouse tone shifted with it. Manager Dave Roberts said Ohtani could be available to hit in a big situation late in the game against the Padres. while the bigger focus was Sunday’s finale.
“If things trend the way we would expect, then he’ll be in there tomorrow,” Roberts said, laying out a simple condition: improvement that holds.
The timing matters. Ohtani didn’t expect the biceps problem to keep him out for long. He pointed to how similar it was to an issue he dealt with earlier this season, and how quickly it eased before.
“It’s the same location that I felt a couple months ago,” Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton on Friday. “It went away pretty relatively quickly [last time], so I expect that to happen again. … On the swing, I did feel it, but I was able to play through it.”
The biceps flared up after Ohtani threw a season-high 110 pitches on Friday. Even so, he said he only felt discomfort during his final at-bat, and he added that he would have been ready to play Saturday. The Dodgers still opted to keep him out of the starting lineup as a precaution.
That caution leaves another question hanging over the next few days: whether Ohtani will make one final pitching start before the All-Star break. The planned start would come Friday against the D-backs.
Roberts said skipping that start could be on the table, not just because of the biceps, but because Ohtani has also been dealing with lingering soreness in his left knee and a blister on his right hand.
The club’s next steps are built around monitoring rather than forcing decisions. When Ohtani resumes playing catch on Sunday, the Dodgers will see how he responds, then monitor his regular throwing progression leading up to the scheduled start.
“We don’t need to make that decision today, tomorrow, the next day, so we have time,” Roberts said. “And I think for us it’s just more of reading and reacting on how he feels.”
Shohei Ohtani Dodgers Padres biceps injury Dave Roberts All-Star break Friday D-backs start left knee soreness right hand blister
So he’s fine now? Baseball news always says “considerably better” like that means 100% lol.
Hope he plays Sunday but why keep him out if he’s feeling better? Isn’t that just giving the Padres an advantage or what.
They’re talking biceps but I swear I saw something about his knee and that blister like?? If he’s dealing with all that then Sunday isn’t really “simple” either. Also 110 pitches then suddenly biceps issues, so maybe they should’ve pulled him earlier.
I don’t trust it. “Improvement that holds” sounds like they’re just hoping. If he throws against the D-backs on Friday then the All-Star break schedule will be all messed up anyway. And the interpreter part makes me think he’s probably just saying what they want him to say, no offense.