Los Angeles Dodgers star designated hitter and starting pitcher Shohei Ohtani will miss Friday night’s start against the Arizona Diamondbacks and will not play in the MLB All-Star Game, the team announced on Friday.
“Los Angeles Dodger Shohei Ohtani will not make his scheduled start on the mound this evening against the Arizona Diamondbacks due to continued irritation in his left knee,” the team’s statement read.
The Dodgers also said that Ohtani will receive “interventions on his knee to put him in the best position for the second half of the season” after the conclusion of the Dodgers’ series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Ohtani will still appear as a designated hitter for the series this weekend, which is the Dodger’s last before the All-Star break.
According to Jack Harris of the California Post, Ohtani will not undergo any surgical procedures for his knee and will likely get it drained and receive an injection.
Harris added that the Dodgers will wait to see how the knee treatment goes before deciding whether Ohtani will continue both pitching and hitting after the All-Star break, but that the expectation is the four-time MVP will continue his two-way duties.
Ohtani experienced knee inflammation after a stolen base attempt during a game against the Pittsburgh Pirates in mid-June and has been playing through the discomfort with the team carefully monitoring the injury. He missed just one game following the injury.
Despite the injury, Ohtani hit his 300th career home run on Tuesday against the Colorado Rockies and has continued to impress on the mound as a starting pitcher.
Ohtani has 20 home runs this season and is batting .290 with a .939 OPS. As a starting pitcher, Ohtani is 8-2 with a 1.79 ERA.
It is perhaps no surprise that Ohtani was the leading vote getter for the National League for the All-Star Game and is a heavy favorite to win the league’s Most Valuable Player award. Unfortunately, he won’t get to participate in All-Star festivities as he gets treatment on his knee.
Ohtani was expected to get one or two at-bats in the game, with manager Dave Roberts saying he was unlikely to pitch and wouldn’t participate in the Home Run Derby.
With Ohtani not pitching Friday night, the Dodgers are expected to go with a bullpen game in the series opener against the Diamondbacks.
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