Shohei Ohtani
Shohei Ohtani has been the sensation in Major League Baseball in recent years because of his exceptional talent for pitching and hitting, with individual recognition since he played for the Los Angeles Angels, but it was not until his arrival to the Los Angeles Dodgers that he managed to taste collective success as he was a key piece for the conquest of the World Series.
Ohtani arrived injured to the Dodgers and during the 2024 season he was only available as a designated hitter and excelled at the plate with offensive production that allowed him to inaugurate the 50-50 club, with 54 home runs and 59 stolen bases, while recovering from Tommy John surgery performed in 2023 that kept him off the mound.
Ohtani is advised to take care of his shoulders
The two-way talent is a dream of the Dodgers to be seen sometime in 2025 on the team and they have it scheduled for May, meanwhile each week has increased the intensity of their bullpen sessions, but the specialist in training pitchers, Dr. Tom House, with experience with Nolan Ryan, Drew Brees and Tom Brady, believes that for his sake, Ohtani should not pitch again
“I hope I’m wrong, but I don’t think his shoulders can handle it,” Dr. House said during his appearance on the podcast ‘Pablo Torre Finds Out, where he added that despite all his qualities, Ohtani is a hitter.
Dr. Tom House stressed that in his view, the value of Ohtani to the Dodgers lies on the field every day, so he doubts that over the years, the Japanese star can withstand the burden of keeping his body with training to hit and pitch.
“It’s a combination of a few things. Mainly, the thresholds within heavy weight training are very good for hitting, but not for pitching,” House told Pablo Torre and added: “His mechanics are very good. His physique is exceptional. But I don’t think his body can do both.”
Los Angeles Dodgers’ 16-0 defeat to the Chicago Cubs, in which they were swept at home, hit manager Dave Roberts hard. He has experienced many defeats, but none like this one, where they find themselves in uncharted territory. Now, they fear they may have lost their touch.
The scoreboard indicated that this time the Los Angeles team was far from reaching the standards they had set for themselves. That’s why Dave Roberts admitted: “Honestly, I don’t feel good. But I’m not too down on the results right now.” These were the statements of the MLB champion manager, where he tries to maintain cautious optimism.
Problems come in waves for Dave Roberts
In addition to the scandalous defeats, things have not been easy for Shohei Ohtani. His batting average dropped to .273 with four home runs in 17 games. As has been characteristic since his arrival with the Angels, he took the field as a designated hitter against the Cubs, but did not hit in five at-bats, including that grounder to first in the last inning where the team’s crisis was completed.
Los Angeles Dodgers were hoping to get out of their slump. However, Teoscar Hernandez, one of their hottest hitters, did not play in the starting lineup against the Colorado Rockies. Manager Dave Roberts spoke about the reason: a persistent stomach upset. However, it is a remedy that has a short-term solution.
Los Angeles Dodgers’ start to the season keeps them optimistic
This painful loss to the Cubs marked the Dodgers’ worst home shutout in franchise history. As Roberts said: “What concerns me is that we haven’t been able to play our own style of baseball. If we can get that back, the results will come.”
There are only 16 games played where there is enough time to adjust the pieces that are needed to improve every aspect of the team: starters, relievers and batting effectiveness. If the current Major League champions do not see results in the summer, we could see desperate moves to give their fans the chance to play in another World Series.