A heart-stopping second occurred for Dodgers followers within the backside of the seventh inning tonight when Shohei Ohtani tried to steal second base. Ohtani was tagged out by Yankees second baseman Gleyber Torres however appeared to undergo an harm on the play and was escorted off the sector by a group coach. After the sport, supervisor Dave Roberts instructed reporters (together with The Athletic’s Fabian Ardaya) that Ohtani had suffered a “little” shoulder subluxation, or partial dislocation. The star will bear moreover testing tomorrow, and although Roberts emphasised that he didn’t wish to speculate on the severity of the harm till these exams have been accomplished, he famous that they’re “inspired” by preliminary exams and that he’s “anticipating” Ohtani to be again within the lineup for Recreation 3 on Monday.
It’s a doubtlessly devastating blow to the Dodgers as they give the impression of being to seize their first full-season World Collection championship since 1988. Whereas Ohtani has been unable to pitch this yr after present process elbow surgical procedure final September, it’s unattainable to name his first season with the membership something apart from an absolute success. The 30-year-old celebrity slashed an eye-popping .310/.390/.646 (181 wRC+) in 159 video games for the Dodgers this yr and have become the primary participant in MLB historical past to steal at the least 50 bases (59) and hit at the least 50 dwelling runs (54) in a single season. Ohtani’s dynamic play has additionally been a key issue within the membership’s postseason run up to now, as he had slashed a formidable .277/.414/.489 with three dwelling runs and ten RBI throughout the playoffs this yr coming into tonight’s sport.
Whether or not the Dodgers could have that explosive offensive expertise within the lineup for the rest of the sequence stays to be seen. Whereas the severity of Ohtani’s harm isn’t at present clear, an harm of any significance will depart he and the Dodgers pressured to stability the star’s well being with their aim of closing out a World Collection championship they’re simply two victories away from clinching. Different gamers on the Dodgers’ roster, together with fellow star Freddie Freeman and veteran shortstop Miguel Rojas, have performed by way of accidents this postseason in hopes of bringing a World Collection dwelling to Los Angeles. If the Dodgers take the same plan of action with Ohtani and his shoulder subject is pretty gentle, it’s potential to think about him being again within the membership’s lineup when the sequence strikes to New York for Recreation 3 on Monday evening.
That’s removed from a assure, nevertheless, and it’s equally simple to think about the problem being extreme sufficient to go away Ohtani prone to lacking the remainder of the sequence. If the harm proves to be extreme sufficient for the Dodgers to take away Ohtani from their playoff roster, outfielders Kevin Kiermaier and James Outman would seem like the more than likely choices for the membership to contemplate activating rather than their celebrity on the playoff roster. In the meantime, Ohtani vacating the DH spot within the lineup would permit the membership to supply extra relaxation to Freeman, who has performed by way of the postseason on a sprained ankle and may benefit from the extra day without work his toes. In such a state of affairs, Max Muncy would possible slide over from third base to cowl first for Freeman, opening up the new nook for Enrique Hernandez and second base for Gavin Lux.
In fact, with simply 5 months left to Opening Day 2025, a very extreme harm couldn’t solely depart Ohtani unavailable for the rest of the World Collection however doubtlessly affect his Spring Coaching and readiness for the beginning of subsequent yr. Crimson Sox shortstop Trevor Story underwent what was believed to be season-ending shoulder surgical procedure again in April following an preliminary analysis just like Ohtani’s after Story awkwardly landed on his shoulder throughout a play within the subject. Surgical procedure wound up being crucial as a result of structural harm in his shoulder and got here with an preliminary six-month restoration timeline, although Story managed to return forward of schedule in simply 5.
The Dodgers are fairly accustomed to the perils of dislocated shoulders, as throughout the 2020 NLCS Cody Bellinger suffered a dislocated proper shoulder that he performed by way of of their final World Collection run however in the end required surgical procedure on. That process got here with a restoration timeline of simply ten weeks however Bellinger infamously struggled badly over his subsequent two seasons with the Dodgers, resulting in questions relating to whether or not or not he returned to motion earlier than he was totally wholesome. Nevertheless extreme Ohtani’s harm seems to be, one silver lining for the Dodgers is that Ohtani’s left shoulder is the one at subject, that means his pitching arm is more likely to be minimally impacted by the problem as he appears towards a return to the mound in 2025.
