Buster Olney Thinks Shohei Ohtani’s Two-Way Era Has an Expiration Date

The Dodgers and Shohei Ohtani are dealing with another biceps issue. And it’s got one of ESPN’s top insiders wondering if baseball’s most unique talent can keep doing what he does for the long haul.

Buster Olney went on SportsCenter and basically said what a lot of people have been thinking: Ohtani might not be able to handle both hitting and pitching for his whole career. It’s just too much on one body.

“I think it’s something that tells us that going forward, this is not gonna be something he’s gonna do to the end of his career,” Olney said. “It’s really difficult to manage both the hitting and the pitching at the same time.”

Ohtani’s dealing with a biceps issue that flared up Friday against San Diego. He’s also had leg and blister problems over the years. On that swing where he felt it, he played through it. But he’s been here before.

“It’s the same location that I felt a couple months ago,” Ohtani said through an interpreter. “It went away pretty relatively quickly, so I expect that to happen again. … On the swing, I did feel it, but I was able to play through it.”

The Dodgers think he could be back in the lineup by July 5. Manager Dave Roberts said Ohtani heals fast and always finds a way back. But he also acknowledged the toll this takes.

“He’s a quick healer, and finds a way to get back,” Roberts said. “But I do think that for us to read and react and hear what his body is telling him is really important, given the toll it takes on his body to be a two-way player.”

This season Ohtani has an ERA of 1.79 over 14 starts with eight wins. That’s legit ace stuff. He’s also hitting .295 with 22 homers. Nobody else in the league is even trying to do what he does.

But the question is simple: for how long?

Olney’s basically saying the clock is ticking. The Dodgers have to decide if they want to squeeze another start in before the All-Star break. Roberts left it open, saying anything is on the table.

“Obviously, we’re not going to make that decision right now,” Roberts said. “But anything should be on the table, certainly.”

LA is running away with the NL West at 58-31. They’ve won eight of their last 10. They play San Diego again Saturday. And they’ll keep managing Ohtani game by game, season by season. Because nobody really knows how long this version of him can last.