CHICAGO — And the slow goes on.
Because he was away from the team for the birth of his daughter last weekend, Shohei Ohtani did not throw his weekly bullpen session on Saturday. He resumed his throwing program by playing catch before Tuesday’s game at Wrigley Field, will throw a light bullpen session on Wednesday then throw his next full bullpen session on Saturday.
It is the pattern Ohtani’s throwing has settled into since he resumed throwing after taking a month off – light bullpen session on Wednesday, full one on Saturday.
It’s a slow schedule that is not leading to a return to the mound in games any time soon.
“It hasn’t changed,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.
“I know it’s leading toward somewhere – him pitching at some point with us. I still don’t know what the next step is. And I think once he starts facing hitters, then it’ll start to become more pronounced. But right now, he’s still in the mode of just throwing bullpens.”
Before facing hitters, Ohtani will have to throw all of his pitches during his bullpen sessions. He has not thrown his slider yet.
During an appearance on “The Jim Rome Show” earlier this week, Roberts said Ohtani was still “a couple of months away” from returning as a pitcher, a timeline that Roberts acknowledged was “vague.” It’s also a timeline that puts Ohtani’s first major-league action as a pitcher since August 2023 much closer to the All-Star break than the May projections Roberts made before the season.
Tuesday, Roberts acknowledged that the current estimate was not a specific return the Dodgers have mapped out but was “more guessing on where he’s at right now.”
While the Dodgers’ aim is to have Ohtani available and at full strength as a pitching option in the postseason, some – including seven-time league MVP Barry Bonds – have suggested Ohtani should not pitch at all.
“Pros and cons – it certainly obviously brings in risk. That’s the con,” Roberts said of the suggestion. “But a guy that has done it, has performed really well as a pitcher, the desire to do that, the talent to do that, and you essentially get two All-Star players in one – so there’s a lot of upside. But I certainly understand peoples’ opinions.”
REHAB PROGRESS
Left-hander Clayton Kershaw made his second rehab start on Tuesday night, this time with Double-A Tulsa. Triple-A Oklahoma City was on the road in Salt Lake City, where bad weather was possible.
Kershaw pitched three scoreless innings in his first rehab start with OKC last week. In Double-A on Tuesday, he gave up a run on two doubles in his first inning. He gave up four hits in all and one walk while striking out four in three innings. Kershaw threw 60 pitches, 33 strikes.
On the 60-day injured list after surgery on his left foot and knee last November, Kershaw is not eligible to return until mid-May.
Right-hander Tony Gonsolin is scheduled to make his fourth and final rehab start with OKC on Wednesday. Gonsolin has allowed four runs on eight hits while striking out 13 in nine innings over his first three rehab outings.
Gonsolin is on track to make his first big-league start since Tommy John surgery early next week during the Dodgers’ homestand against the Pirates and Marlins.
ALSO
The Dodgers are planning a ‘bullpen game’ on Wednesday with an off day on Thursday to recover. …
Roberts said right-hander Tyler Glasnow has had no ill effects since leaving Sunday’s game in the fifth inning with leg cramps. Glasnow is expected to make his next scheduled start on Sunday.
UP NEXT
Dodgers (TBA) at Cubs (LHP Matthew Boyd, 1-2, 2.01 ERA), Wednesday, 4 p.m., SportsNet LA, MLB Network, 570 AM
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