Although the Los Angeles Dodgers’ bid for a three-peat ended last week with a sweep by the Milwaukee Brewers, superstar Shohei Ohtani is expected to avoid offseason surgery and resume pitching next season.
At the Dodgers’ end-of-season news conference Wednesday, president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said surgery was “not on the table” for Ohtani and that he “fully expects” the four-time MVP to return to the mound in 2027.
Friedman’s comments echoed those of Ohtani, who said after Game 4 of the National League Championship Series last Thursday that he intended to return to being a two-way player.
“I haven’t been able to come to grips with what I learned overall this season,” Ohtani said through an interpreter after the Dodgers were swept. “I will go back to the drawing board in terms of treatment, a training program and see what I can come up with for next season. … And looking forward to having a better season next year.”
In that game, Ohtani ended a 25-game home run drought, the longest of his career, with his first extra-base hit and first three RBIs of the 2026 postseason. He had been 4-for-23 (.174) in the playoffs before the homer.
Ohtani, 32, was limited to 14 starts on the mound in 2026 because of his injuries, finishing 8-2 with a 1.79 ERA, 95 strikeouts and 26 walks in 85 2/3 innings. He last pitched July 3, then served exclusively as the designated hitter for the remainder of the regular season and postseason.
At the plate, Ohtani batted .275 with 30 home runs and 81 RBIs in 135 games and made his sixth consecutive All-Star appearance.
Ohtani won MVP awards twice with the Los Angeles Angels and twice with the Dodgers during his nine major league seasons. He hit three postseason homers in 2024 and eight in 2025 as the Dodgers won back-to-back World Series titles.
–Field Level Media
