Updated Timeline Revealed For Shohei Ohtani’s Return To The Mound

There has been a ton of anticipation about when Shohei Ohtani will take the mound for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

When he was signed by the Dodgers, he had recently undergone Tommy John Surgery, so the team and fanbase knew that it could be well over a year before he was ready to join the pitching rotation.

At the end of this past season, Ohtani had a minor elbow procedure that pushed his timeline back a bit more. The hope was that he would be ready to go at the start of the season, but now it is looking more likely that the month of May is when we will see the MVP throw his first pitch in a Dodgers uniform.

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Updated Timeline For Shohei Ohtani Revealed At Dodgers FanFest

MLB: World Series-Los Angeles Dodgers at New York Yankees | Shohei Ohtani
Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

During Dodgers FanFest on Saturday, both Ohtani and Manager Dave Roberts spoke to the media.

Ohtani was a bit uncommittal in pinpointing a return date.

“Hard to pinpoint when. Generally looking at a couple of weeks to a month of leeway. It will depend on how my first bullpen session will go,” Ohtani told reporters.

When manager Dave Roberts was asked about Ohtani pitching in May, he responded, “Sounds about right.”

There was some hope that he would kick off his Dodgers pitching career in front of his home crowd in the Tokyo series at the start of the season against the Chicago Cubs. That now seems out of the question with a date in May being the target.

Either way, Ohtani’s pitching debut will be coming sooner rather than later and he will join what is widely considered the best starting rotation in all of baseball.

Just in case it needs to be stated, Ohtani will be ready to go at the start of the year in his DH role, ready to defend his MVP crown.