Shohei Ohtani was such a staggeringly good offensive player for the Dodgers last season, and such an important part of their World Series title run, that I can't blame fans if they saw him take the mound for the first time this season and said, "Oh, right! He pitches, too." On Wednesday, in his eighth start of 2025, Ohtani threw a full four innings, giving up two hits, one run, zero walks and striking out eight Cardinals batters. It was his longest pitching outing of the season and perhaps his sharpest, too.
Of course, Ohtani didn't have a rehab start because he's the Dodgers' most important hitter, so he didn't get game action on the mound until he threw for LA a few weeks ago. The team has been extra cautious with his return to the mound, understandably, but four innings is inching closer to a real, full outing for a starter. There's no word on when Ohtani will be fully without a pitch count or innings limit, but it shouldn't be too much longer if the Dodgers keep bringing him along at the pace they have been.
Ohtani pitches four full innings, cranks milestone home run
If you needed any reminding just who Shohei Ohtani is... he gave it to you today. You probably didn't need reminding, but he supplied it anyway. He's the best player in baseball, and one of the most remarkable athletes of all time. His two-run blast on Wednesday was also the 1,000th hit of his MLB career which started way back in 2018, a stat that doesn't sound real. He's really been around seven years? Granted, he spent his first five seasons with the Angels which basically counts as not being in MLB, so that timeline is relative.
Shohei Ohtani goes yard for career hit No. 1,000! pic.twitter.com/c6I2pGSuip
— MLB (@MLB) August 6, 2025
The Dodgers need Ohtani to produce on the mound
LA's two-way freak (complimentary) isn't just back on the mound because he can pitch, he's there in part becasue the Dodgers need him to pitch. The Dodgers just dealt Dustin May to the Red Sox at the trade deadline, and with Blake Snell coming back from injury, Ohtani's return means the Dodgers are ever-so-close to featuring the pitching rotation they envisioned at the beginning of the year.
Yashinobu Yamamoto has been a true ace for the Dodgers in 2025, but Ohtani's pitching talent is enough that, when the time comes, he could be a Game 1 starter in a playoff series. If the Dodgers have a tough decision on their hands in that regard come Fall, then Ohtani's return went incredibly well.
Yamamoto, Ohtani, Snell and Glasnow is about as good of a playoff rotation as you'll find in baseball — and if Clayton Kershaw can give you anything (maybe in a bullpen role) in 2025, that's a borderline miracle.