BOSTON — Shohei Ohtani, the two-way star for the Los Angeles Dodgers, is anticipated to take the mound on Wednesday as he continues to recover from elbow surgery that prevented him from pitching throughout the previous season.
The plan is for Ohtani to work four innings in Cincinnati, with a day off to recuperate before hitting in a game, manager Dave Roberts stated Sunday before the Dodgers played the Boston Red Sox in the last game of their three-game series.
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The Dodgers will use a six-man rotation as the Japanese superstar recovers, accompanied by left-hander Blake Snell, who pitched 4 2/3 innings on Saturday in his fourth rehab start for Triple-A Oklahoma City.
As of right now, their rotation includes Clayton Kershaw, Tyler Glasnow, Dustin May, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Emmet Sheehan.
“It probably lends itself to the six-man because Shohei is going to go on Wednesday and then pitch the following Wednesday,” Roberts said.
Ohtani’s most recent start was on July 22 against Minnesota, where he gave up four hits and one run in three innings. He threw 46 pitches, 30 for strikes, and walked one while striking out three.
Roberts believes that the organization won’t be pushing Ohtani’s workload into games for some time because this season is essentially a rehab year in the major leagues.
According to him, the entire pitching side of the season is essentially maintenance and rehabilitation. We will not relinquish control by telling them, “Hey, you can go 110 pitches.” That won’t happen for a while, in my opinion. I believe we should start at four innings, work our way up to five, and then see where we can go.
The team also recalled left-hander Justin Wrobleski and reinstated right-handed reliever Blake Treinen from the disabled list on Sunday.
With two Series wins over the New York Yankees, the 37-year-old Treinen played a significant role in the team’s drive to the World Series championship the previous season.
Because of tightness in his forearms, he has been out since April 19.
Regarding Treinen’s usage, Roberts stated, “I believe the only thing I’m going to be mindful of is the up-down.” I don’t mind entering an inning of leverage.
This season, Wrobleski, 25, is in his fourth stint with the Dodgers. Roberts stated that he will work out of the bullpen even if he is now a starter.
“Our ‘pen will benefit from just trying to get a good arm, get some length, and maybe use him in two- or three-inning stints,” Roberts stated. Having the top pitchers on your roster in every position is the aim.
LA optioned right-handers Will Klein and Edgardo Henriquez to clear space on the roster.
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Link: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb AP MLB
