Dodgers provide huge update on Shohei Ohtani’s stalled return to the mound

The Dodgers are in uncharted territory with Shohei Ohtani's return to pitching. He hasn't thrown in a major league game since August 2023 and has undergone two surgeries since; one to address a UCL tear while he was still with the Angels, and one to repair a torn labrum last year after the World Series. They have to ease him back into throwing, but they also can't do what they'd do with any old pitcher and send him on a rehab assignment to the minors without dramatically affecting the lineup.

So the Dodgers are playing things by ear. Ohtani started making progress during spring training but stopped short of facing hitters. He threw his last bullpen on Feb. 25 before the Dodgers decided to press pause so that he could ramp up his preparation as a hitter, which muddied the timeline of his return to the mound (originally projected in May).

However, the Dodgers said that he would get back to throwing bullpens on Saturday, presumably before their last game against the Tigers. Dave Roberts declined to provide a timeline to his Dodgers debut as a pitcher, which is probably for the best; the Dodgers don't want to get hopes up if things take even longer than initially planned.

Shohei Ohtani will return to throwing bullpen sessions on Saturday after a month-long break

In an appearance on Foul Territory, Jeff Passan characterized the Dodgers' handling of Ohtani as the club "winging it," which isn't an unfair observation. There's no blueprint for this, and while the debate about Ohtani being a more valuable hitter or pitcher isn't going to go away anytime soon, he proved exactly how lethal he can be when focusing only on hitting for an entire season, and the Dodgers aren't going to want to do anything that jeopardizes that.

Besides, the Dodgers have plenty of pitching depth (too much, even) to supplement the rotation until Ohtani returns. No doubt they'll need it even after he's throwing again, given that they'll almost certainly limit his innings and continue treating him as delicately as possible even when he's ready.

The Dodgers have so much depth, in fact, that it wouldn't be entirely surprising if they walked back their dedication to a five-man rotation and added Tony Gonsolin if he returns before Ohtani. There are a lot of breakable pitchers in the rotation as it is, and the Dodgers could do with a little added protection for all of them.