Dodgers make the right call on Shohei Ohtani but still need to take it a step further

Shohei Ohtani returned to the Los Angeles Dodgers' lineup on Monday night after a four-game absence. He went 0-for-3 with a walk and two strikeouts in LA's 6-3 win over the Cincinnati Reds. He's 7-for-54 with just one home run and two RBI since August 18, marking one of the worst offensive stretches of his career.

The Dodgers toyed with the idea of an IL stint and ultimately decided against it, but they don't expect to see him back on the mound this season. Dave Roberts, ever the equivocator, said ahead of their opener against the Reds that the possibility of a return is "not dead," but Ohtani himself said just hours later that he would be focused on hitting for the rest of the year.

But the problem isn't just that Ohtani isn't hitting well right now, it's that he looks physically incapable of doing so. The problems that have ailed him since he was sidelined from pitching duties in July haven't gone away, and they're not going to magically go away just because he's closing the door on pitching for now.

The Dodgers just need to do what they keep needlessly putting off and move him to the 15-day IL.

Shohei Ohtani's underwhelming return to Dodgers' lineup should force their hand with an IL stint

Ohtani still isn't swinging like his usual self, and he visibly winced coming out of his swing multiple times on Monday night.

The Dodgers are on a five-game winning streak even without Ohtani in the lineup for four and helpless in one of them. After this series against the Reds, they'll get the Miami Marlins, Reds again, San Francisco Giants, San Diego Padres, and then the Giants again to close out the season. All but the Padres have losing records.

There's simply no point not to put Ohtani on the 15-day IL. It wouldn't even be a phantom stint — he's clearly playing through discomfort and needs some more time off — and it wouldn't even end his regular season. The rest of the offense has proven they can pick up the slack when Ohtani's not at his best.

The Dodgers are understandably hesitant to lose their superstar for long, but they already benched him. He showed no signs of improvement when he came back. They don't need him right now, but they definitely need him for the postseason. It's time for the Dodgers to make a decision they should've made weeks ago.

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