Shohei Ohtani is back to full strength for the Los Angeles Dodgers. After undergoing an elbow injury late in the 2023 season, the two-way superstar was forced to forego pitching in 2024 and ultimately underwent his second Tommy John surgery. That didn't stop him from being named the National League MVP as the Dodgers won another World Series title, but earlier this year, Ohtani finally returned to the mound.
At first, his appearances were brief, as he tried to build up for later in the season. Sometimes, he was only pitching an inning or two in a start. Recently, he revealed that this was all part of the plan for his rehab journey. He did not go on a rehab assignment and instead chose to rehab while still with the Major League club.
He even stated that fastball velocity was something he wanted to build up and that his breaking pitches weren't necessarily a priority in his first few starts.
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Shohei Ohtani wasn't even pitching at full strength
Ultimately, it's understandable as to why Ohtani and the Dodgers took this approach. Despite his second Tommy John surgery, he was still able to hit, so putting him on the injured list wouldn't have been a good idea, as they would have been without his presence in the starting lineup just so he could build up as a pitcher.
With Ohtani on the active roster, the Dodgers actually were able to get creative and have him pitch, but also not push him to hard, though they still had him face the toughest possible competition in Major League hitters.
It was doctor recommended that he focused on his fastball velocity rather than worry about his breaking pitches. But now, Ohtani is built back up and can use his full arsenal.
Shohei Ohtani is about to get a lot more terrifying to face
Ohtani, in theory, has seven pitches he uses, per Baseball Savant. Assuming he didn't use his curveball and splitter in his first few appearances this season, that accounts for about 10 percent of his arsenal. Assuming he was liming his breaking pitches even more, that could account for nearly half his pitches. Historically, Ohtani throws his fastball just over 36 percent of the time.
It was ultimately smart for him to focus on his fastball being where it needed to be before working on other things. While velocity does tend to be over-emphasized, it's important that Ohtani's fastball had life on it and was good to go before he started pitching deeper into games.
Now, Ohtani has a chance to be a part of the Dodgers postseason rotation this coming October. He should be built all the way back up by that point and ready to go deeper into games.
We'll see what the rest of the 2025 regular season and postseason bring for Ohtani. The Dodgers have allowed Ohtani plenty of leeway in his return to the mound. At the same time, they should be cautious as he begins throwing breaking pitches at a greater rate. His season could go downhill fast.