Before Shohei Ohtani was placed on the disabled list in early June with a Grade 2 strain of his ulnar collateral ligament, the Los Angeles Angels had done a nice job leveraging his two-way nature. Now, there are hints the Angels could take advantage of Ohtani's versatility in order to get him back on the active roster while his elbow heals -- albeit by using him only as a hitter.

Recently, Ohtani has stood in against live pitching -- not yet taking swings, but tracking pitches to keep his eyes sharp. Here's more from Jeff Fletcher of the Orange County Register:

That won't happen before next Thursday when Ohtani is scheduled to be evaluated again. Doctors will then judge the healing of his sprained ulnar collateral ligament from the stem-cell therapy and platelet-rich plasma injection.

While the Angels haven't publicly said anything about what they expect from his next evaluation, there are certainly some signs that it might be reasonable to hope he can hit again this year.

The Angels' plans for Ohtani presumably hinge on his elbow's diagnosis. If his elbow is progressing, and there isn't the possibility for further injury or aggravation, then the Angels could in theory have him serve as the DH as he continues to rehab.

Even as a hitter, Ohtani would provide a boost for the Angels. He had hit .289/.372/.535 over his first 114 at-bats this season, marks good for a 150 OPS+. Those numbers may have been compiled in a small sample, but they still represent the second-best offensive performance on the Angels roster, behind only Mike Trout. There's something to be said about Ohtani giving the Angels a worthwhile left-handed bat, too -- both Luis Valbuena and Kole Calhoun, the other lefties in the lineup, have struggled to get going this season.

The Angels have cut into the distance between themselves and the Seattle Mariners in the hunt for the second wild card spot. The Angels' three-game winning streak combined with Seattle's five-game losing streak has left Los Angeles five games back in the loss column. The Angels' odds of making a full recovery remain slim -- about 11.1 percent, per SportsLine's projections -- but getting Ohtani back in any capacity would help improve their chances.