Dodgers' two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani appears to be a one-way star the rest of this season. Having already been shut down from pitching since July 3, it now appears his time on the mound in 2026 is over. When asked Monday if he'd pitch again this season, he said, through his interpreter (via MLB.com), "most likely, no.
I'm going to be focusing on hitting moving forward." Ohtani has dealt with a knee injury and later a biceps injury, which have not only prevented him from pitching but also seem to have compromised his work with the bat as well. He had missed the four games prior to Monday amid those nagging injuries, as well as neck soreness. "I'm confident that my overall performance should be better moving forward," Ohtani said.
"I think the thing that I was more focused on was making sure that the pitching wouldn't cause the most worst scenario, which was for me to not be able to play at all." Ohtani returned to the lineup as a designated hitter Monday evening and went 0 for 3 with two strikeouts and a walk. As he alluded to, he's been in a bit of a funk at the plate. Since hitting three homers in two games in Coors Field Aug. 17-18, he's hit .122/.295/.184 in his last 13 games.
With his pitching very likely concluded for the season, Ohtani will finish 8-2 with a 1.79 ERA, 0.95 WHIP and 95 strikeouts in 85 ⅔ innings, good for 3.0 WAR. Offensively, at this point, he's hitting .277/.380/.522 (148 OPS+) with 25 doubles, four triples, 30 home runs, 80 RBI, 89 runs, 11 steals and 3.5 WAR. The overwhelming MVP favorite heading into the season, it sure looks right now like the four-time champion is not going to take the honors this time; Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong now sits as a -20000 favorite, per DraftKings.
Assuming things continue on this path, it'll mark the first season with the Dodgers that Ohtani does not win MVP. Still, the Dodgers have a chance to threepeat as World Series champions with Ohtani playing an integral part, and that's much more important. Without Ohtani in the rotation, the Dodgers still head into October with a dominant pitching staff, led by aces Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tarik Skubal, as well as Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow.
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