Shohei Ohtani will miss his last pitching start prior to the All-Star break but he can still make an impact with his bat when the Los Angeles Dodgers host the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night.
Ohtani was scratched from his Friday start and the Dodgers announced the two-way superstar will miss next Tuesday’s All-Star Game due to continued problems with his left knee.
Ohtani is scheduled to be in the lineup at designated hitter for all three games of the series against the Diamondbacks.
The Dodgers said Ohtani will “have some interventions on his knee” next week to get him ready for the second half of the season
Ohtani also has been battling right bicep soreness and a right hand blister in recent weeks.
Earlier this week, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was weighing the issue and hoping Ohtani could see limited action for the National League in the All-Star Game.
“When you’re Shohei, he understands the responsibility he has, so I do think that there’s a middle (ground) for what’s best for him, what potentially could be downside, but also what’s best for the game,” said Roberts.
Ohtani, 32, is 8-2 with a 1.79 ERA in 14 starts this season. He is batting .290 with 20 homers and 56 RBIs in 85 games.
Ohtani was 8-for-12 with four runs and two RBIs as the Dodgers took two of three from Arizona in a series at the start of June in Phoenix.
The Dodgers are 5-2 against the Diamondbacks this season entering the three-game set that concludes play before the All-Star break.
Ohtani homered twice as the Dodgers took two of three from the visiting Colorado Rockies this week. The second blast was the 300th of his career.
Freddie Freeman is batting .407 (24-for-59) over the last 15 games. He has logged three hits twice and two hits on seven other occasions during the stretch.
The National League West-leading Dodgers have won 12 of their past 16 games entering the series with the Diamondbacks.
Arizona recorded a 3-1 victory over host San Diego on Thursday to split a four-game set. The victory was just the fifth in the past 13 games for the Diamondbacks.
Third baseman Nolan Arenado, who stands six hits shy of 2,000, homered for Arizona, which is tied with San Diego for second place in the division, a staggering 14 1/2 games behind Los Angeles.
Left-hander Eduardo Rodriguez (7-3, 2.25) starts for the Diamondbacks and he is an All-Star for the first time in his 11-year career.
Rodriguez was a 19-game winner for the Boston Red Sox in 2019 but he wasn’t tabbed. He definitely appreciates that he’s finally on his way to an All-Star Game.
“After all these years, it’s really special to have the opportunity to finally go to one,” Rodriguez told reporters. “I thought I was never going to go to one because I’m usually better in the second half. I’m just really happy about it.”
Rodriguez, 33, lost to the visiting Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday when he gave up two runs and five hits over six innings.
Rodriguez is 2-4 with a 4.74 ERA in nine career starts against the Dodgers.
Ohtani is 7-for-23 (.304) with one homer and three doubles against Rodriguez. Miguel Rojas (7-for-10) is batting .700 against Rodriguez and Freeman is hitting .500 (10-for-20, one homer).
Teoscar Hernandez (10-for-28, three homers) also has fared well against Rodriguez. Kyle Tucker has hit two homers but is just 3-for-22.
The Diamondbacks reportedly informed first baseman Pavin Smith after Thursday’s game that he will be designated for assignment. Smith, the seventh overall pick in 2017, was batting just .141 with one homer, one double and six RBIs in 28 games this season, his seventh with Arizona.
Arizona will recall rookie outfielder Ryan Waldschmidt from Triple-A Reno. Waldschmidt is the Diamondbacks’ top prospect and was a first-round pick (No. 31 overall) in 2024.
The Dodgers didn’t immediately announce a replacement starter for Ohtani.
–Field Level Media
