Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani takes major step toward pitching return

Bill Plunkett, The Orange County Register on Aug 22, 2026

Published in Baseball

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LOS ANGELES — While thousands of fans lined up outside the stadium hours before game time to make sure they got his bobblehead Saturday, Shohei Ohtani took the mound again in a significant step toward returning to two-way player status.

Ohtani threw 30 pitches in a simulated inning, facing Will Smith. It was Ohtani’s first time facing a hitter since his last start July 3. Left knee pain has prevented him from pitching since then and limited his time throwing off a mound in the first few weeks after the All-Star break.

“If it were up to Shohei, he’d be in a game in a few days,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.

That won’t happen. The expectation is for Ohtani to throw another live batting practice session next week, extending his pitch count. But he could be pitching in games shortly after that with a gradual buildup similar to last year when he returned from Tommy John surgery — one or two innings in his first outing, two or three in his next and so on.

“I think it’s behind us,” Roberts said of Ohtani’s knee issue. “I think, certainly given the buildup, we’ll be able to manage it. It’s going to be a slow one-, two-, three-inning situation. I’d like to think the knee thing is behind us.”

Even with that slow process, Roberts said he believes Ohtani could be stretched out to full starter status in time for the postseason.

“I would say that’s probably the goal — but also the most important thing is how he’s feeling and how we get there,” Roberts said. “I could sit here and say, ‘Yeah, six innings when we start the postseason.’ But he’s still got to do the work and get there and he’s got to pass some tests and markers.

“That’s probably the goal but we still have a ways to get there.”

September bullpen

Justin Wrobleski and Edwin Diaz threw bullpen sessions Saturday. Wrobleski is on the injured list with forearm inflammation after surpassing his career high in innings pitched. Diaz is on the IL with neck inflammation after struggling in his return from elbow surgery.

Both are expected to return in September — but in different roles.

After making 20 starts, Wrobleski will return in a relief role “being sort of a two-, three-inning guy,” Roberts said. That would make Wrobleski an option to ‘piggyback’ with Ohtani as he builds up with shorter outings in September.

Tyler Glasnow will replace Wrobleski in the starting rotation. He is expected to start Tuesday in Atlanta after making four starts on a minor league injury-rehabilitation assignment with Class-A Ontario and Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Diaz, meanwhile, will return in lower-leverage situations instead of the closer role he had filled. Roberts had insisted it was important to use Diaz in that role after he returned from surgery, but Diaz has four blown saves in 11 opportunities this season, including three after his return. Neck inflammation affected his mechanics and Diaz will use the time on the IL to work with the coaching staff on restoring his delivery.

“I think it’s more of getting him back healthy and then putting him in some softer-landing situations to get the confidence, to get the feel and the trust of executing pitches, getting major league hitters out and then at that point in time we’ll go from there,” Roberts said.

Klein plan

Right-hander Will Klein is not ready for his season to be over. The right-hander started a throwing program this week in hopes of returning to pitch despite bone chips in his elbow that have “calcified and grown” over the course of the season.

“Just gonna throw. See how it feels. Throw again. See how it feels,” Klein said. “It’s not a set timeline. If it feels good the next day, we take the next step.”

Klein said he has been told he is not a candidate for the “NanoNeedle” procedure that Tarik Skubal and Blake Snell had because of the size and number of loose bodies in his elbow. Any surgery at this point would sideline him until next spring. Waiting to have the surgery would not change that.

“At some point, you’d like to get them out,” he said. “But obviously if you get surgery now, the season’s over. I was just sitting there thinking I didn’t want that to be how this ends. So if I can deal with how it feels — a little bit of pain is fine. So if we can get it to a manageable point, clear it up and try to get through the rest of the year. I’d rather do that than call it now.”