Overview
- Manager Dave Roberts said the club scheduled a bullpen or live BP session for Wednesday or Thursday and described a Sunday start in Detroit as a possibility depending on how Ohtani feels.
- The Dodgers plan to limit any initial mound appearance to roughly one inning and then progressively increase his workload toward about five innings or an 80-pitch mark for postseason readiness.
- Ohtani has not pitched since July 3 because of left-knee inflammation and some biceps concern, but he has remained the everyday designated hitter and produced strong offensive numbers this season.
- During Tuesday’s game in Atlanta he briefly jogged gingerly to the dugout, which prompted monitoring, but Roberts noted Ohtani ran normally later and legged out a triple.
- The team’s approach relies on day-of medical and managerial checks, use of injections and staged throwing work to preserve Ohtani’s two-way value and maximize his availability for October.