Shohei Ohtani 'conservative' injury return timeline revealed after Dodgers' decision

The Dodgers' rotation is already in flux thanks to an unexpected IL stint for Blake Snell, and their depth is being put to the test. Justin Wrobleski and Landon Knack both got starts in the Dodgers' most recent series against the Nationals, and while Knack (who is expected to get at least one more turn through the rotation) will at least allow the Dodgers to preserve their bullpen a little more, neither rookie was able to make a good impression in their first starts of the season.

LA has nine pitchers on the IL since Snell was moved, but Shohei Ohtani is also a factor here. He'll never go onto the IL as long as he's also able to hit, and the Dodgers can't afford to send him on a rehab assignment and lose him from the lineup for even a week, so he's had to take his rehab from elbow surgery in 2023 and shoulder surgery in 2024 slowly.

He started and stopped a bit during spring training, wanting to focus entirely on hitting as the regular season neared, but he's resumed "serious throwing sessions" once a week, per Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register. Ohtani characterized his progression as "conservative," and Plunkett estimated that fans won't see Ohtani on a mound again until June at the earliest.

Shohei Ohtani clarifies "conservative" return to pitching as Dodgers treat him carefully

"I feel pretty good with where I’m at physically," Ohtani said when approached this week. "There’s some limitation on how hard I’m supposed to throw, or the type of pitches I’m allowed to throw, so once I’m pretty clear of being able to do all of the above, I feel pretty good about throwing live BP."

However, he's only going to be able to do as much as the Dodgers let him, and they have every reason to exercise caution. If they're going to want him to pitch in the postseason, they probably shouldn't hold him off until the late summer while waiting to see if he'll even bounce back well enough to factor into an October rotation. Still, he's far more valuable at this moment as their DH.

DH Ohtani is batting .315 with a 1.023 OPS through 14 games with four homers and three stolen bases, even as half of the Dodgers lineup seems to have forgotten how to hit. If the Dodgers can't lose him to a temporary rehab assignment, then they definitely can't lose him because they pushed him too hard to get back to pitching.