Dodgers fans won’t buy LA’s optimism on Shohei Ohtani after worrisome knee update

Shohei Ohtani's knee injury isn't exactly as cautionary as the Los Angeles Dodgers are making it out to be. The Dodgers announced on Friday that Ohtani wouldn't pitch over the weekend against the Arizona Diamondbacks, citing irritation in his left knee.

Considering the update arrived out of nowhere, that alone was reason for concern. Ohtani still served as the team's designated hitter against the Diamondbacks, and homered on Sunday, but the news surrounding the injury isn't getting better. Before Sunday's game, the Dodgers confirmed that Ohtani would have a procedure to drain his knee.

This is a situation where the Dodgers' actions aren't exactly matching their words. There's enough of a concern there where LA felt the need for Ohtani to have his knee drained. Ohtani also received a pain injection. The Dodgers have already confirmed that Ohtani won't be playing in the All-Star game on Tuesday.

Dodgers stress caution with Shohei Ohtani injury, but should they be believed?

The Dodgers are in a position where they can take a cautious approach with Ohtani, but considering their track record with providing accurate injury timelines, it's hard to believe there's nothing else wrong under the hood. For now, Ohtani (and the Dodgers) are saying all the right things.

“The knee flared up,” Ohtani told reporters on Friday. “Sometimes it calms down. There’s a lot of just kind of up and down, just kind of seeing how the knee really handled the last couple weeks. And really, the decision was made to do the injection after seeing how the knee reacted over the last couple weeks.”

Again, if the injury was nothing, the Dodgers wouldn't have made the decision they did. Players don't go out of their way to get their knee drained unless there's the realization that nothing else is working. Considering this is an issue that Ohtani has had over the last couple of weeks, it's a sign that the Dodgers may not exactly know what is going on.

For now, the Dodgers aren't quite at that doomsday scenario. Ohtani continues to look like an offensive force, and is clearly the favorite to be the National League MVP once again. That said, part of making sure the Dodgers are ready for their run in October is knowing that Ohtani will be taking the mound as a starting pitcher.

As long as there's unknown surrounding the status of his left knee, the fear of Ohtani not being able to pitch during the postseason will remain.

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