Dave Roberts is entering All-Star Weekend with a short list of things Shohei Ohtani won’t be doing. Pitching is off the table. So is the Home Run Derby. What is on the table? A couple of at-bats, probably, and that’s about it.
“Don’t see him in the Home Run Derby, don’t see him pitching, but I do see him taking an at-bat or two,” Roberts told ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez.
It’s not a surprise. Ohtani has been dealing with a bicep issue that has lately been a low-level concern for the Dodgers. Roberts said Tuesday that Ohtani is still lined up to make his final start before the All-Star break on Friday, and the bicep hasn’t been a problem. So the injury is real but manageable. The team just isn’t pushing it.
Ohtani is having a season that looks like business as usual for him — which is to say, absurd. Through 83 games he’s hitting .294/.409/.535 with 19 home runs. On the mound he’s got a 1.79 ERA and 95 strikeouts across 14 starts. He’s on track for his fifth MVP award, which is the kind of thing that makes you stop and realize you’re watching one of the best players to ever do it.
Fans wanted the full show. They wanted to see him launch moonshots in the Derby and then come out of the bullpen in the All-Star Game. That’s not happening. But knowing Ohtani, two at-bats could still produce something memorable. The guy doesn’t exactly take nights off.
The Home Run Derby, as a side note, is probably better off without him. Not because Ohtani wouldn’t be entertaining. But because the Derby has a way of wrecking swings, and the Dodgers have real October plans that don’t include a banged-up designated hitter in late July. Roberts is being smart about it.
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