Dodgers fans will love LA’s (no-brainer) plan for Shohei Ohtani in 2026

Over the past few years, the Dodgers have established that the health and status of their starting pitchers can't be safely assumed ahead of Opening Day. Fans would've assumed that postseason hero Blake Snell would be hopeful not to miss a start in 2026, but he might not be ready by March 26.

So, we'll assume nothing. The Dodgers have been elusive about how they're going to manage their starters in 2026, alluding to lighter workloads in the front half of the season and careful management for Snell and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. What exactly that might entail is anyone's guess.

However, Shohei Ohtani made his own status very clear. Although he's not participating in the World Baseball Classic as a two-way player, he'll be ready to pitch by Opening Day, hoping for his first fully(ish) healthy season since 2023, his last with the Angels.

When the Dodgers say they're going to handle their starters carefully, we can guess that they'll take advantage of their excess pitching depth and let Emmet Sheehan, Gavin Stone, and River Ryan duke it out in spring training for the last spot in a six-man (maybe last two spots, depending on Snell's status), or go to openers with any of those three as long relievers more often in the early-goings.

Still, it seems reasonable to expect Ohtani to pitch at least every six days en route to his almost-inevitable fourth consecutive MVP award.

Dodgers expect Shohei Ohtani to be fully ready for two-way player duties by Opening Day

2022 is still Ohtani's only fully healthy season as two-way player. He only missed five games as the Angels' DH and made 28 starts (166 innings) for a 2.33 ERA. He placed fourth in Cy Young voting and came in second as AL MVP to Aaron Judge.

It was that year that really sold everyone on the idea that maybe Ohtani could really do this two-way player thing, and it begged a question that's almost certainly going to be a storyline again this season — if he stays healthy, knock on wood — is he a better hitter or a better pitcher?

Ohtani has nothing left to prove offensively. 50/50 has already been conquered, he became the first pure DH to win an MVP, etc. Whether or not he can pitch a full season again (at least, to the fullest extent the Dodgers will left him) is still yet to be determined.

Managing his workload has been a tricky thing for the Dodgers to navigate, and there might be some bumps in the road this season, but anyone who doubts Ohtani does so at their own peril.