Shohei Ohtani was the league’s most valuable player in 2024 and helped bring a World Series title to Los Angeles. He became the first member of the 50-50 club, and yet, one of his best assets has not even been on display for the Los Angeles Dodgers yet.
Ohtani is also a world-class pitcher, who has been recovering from his second Tommy John Surgery since before he even signed with the Dodgers. But he, and the team, have always made it known that he would return to pitching and would become a part of the now vaunted starting rotation.
The timeline for when Shohei Ohtani would make his debut has continually been pushed back. There was an outside chance that he would take the mound in the playoffs last year.
That obviously did not happen.
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Then there was the hope that it would be at the start of the 2025 season. That was pushed back a few weeks ago and manager Dave Roberts was optimistic that the month of May was realistic for his debut.
Today, during Spring Training, Ohtani threw his first pitching session with the team in the public eye.
Update On Shohei Ohtani Pitching Timeline
After the session, Dave Roberts told reporters that Ohtani threw a 14-pitch bullpen and reached 92 and 94 mph with his fastball.
Those are not Cy Young heat checks yet, but still very promising velocity for a player who has not pitched since August 23, 2023.
- Shohei Ohtani 2022 Pitching Stats: 28 GS, 15/9 W/L, 219 Ks, 1.01 WHIP, 2.33 ERA
The Dodgers will take their time with his advancement in bullpen sessions, and this will have no effect on his normal designated hitter duties, where he will look to defend his MVP.
In terms of when Ohtani could face simulated sessions and real hitters? Roberts said that there is a chance that he would be facing hitters by the time the team heads out for Tokyo.
This does not mean that his timeline has been moved up from a potential May debut, but it does signal, that at least for now, there have been no setbacks, which is a great sign.
This Dodgers starting rotation is loaded, so there is no rush to get him into the lineup. Ultimately, you just want Ohtani to be at his peak when the playoffs come knocking.