Shohei Ohtani's debut with the Los Angeles Dodgers is on the horizon. Ohtani, who is working his way back from September elbow surgery, is scheduled to play in Tuesday's spring training game against the Chicago White Sox, the Dodgers announced Sunday. The Dodgers and White Sox share the Camelback Ranch complex in Phoenix.
Ohtani's spring debut is "here's how you can buy tickets" official:
Shohei Ohtani will make his Cactus League debut on Tuesday vs. the White Sox at Camelback Ranch.
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) February 25, 2024
🎟: https://t.co/b8tiTv8hbD pic.twitter.com/wG1NxStqT1
Ohtani has spent the early days of spring training taking batting practice, first in the cage and then graduating to at-bats against live pitching. He will not pitch this season following elbow surgery, though he will still be able to DH. The two-way superstar did the same in 2019, while recovering from Tommy John surgery. He hit but did not pitch for the Los Angeles Angels that season.
The Dodgers will begin their regular season in South Korea with the two-game Seoul Series against the San Diego Padres on March 20 and 21. That is only three weeks away, and, for really the first time, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts hedged a little bit when asked whether Ohtani would be available for those two games. From ESPN:
"I do think that having him play certainly adds to the attention of the series, of the games," Roberts said. "But most importantly is his health. So, if it lines up, great. And if it doesn't, then we'll still move on from there."
Unless Ohtani has a setback in his recovery from elbow surgery or suffers a new injury, I would bet the farm on him being in the lineup for that March 20 opener. He's not missing those two games. The Dodgers signed Ohtani to a record $700 million contract (much of which is deferred) and they'll want to protect their investment, but yeah, good luck keeping Ohtani out of that lineup.
Still only 29, Ohtani authored a .304/.412/.654 batting line with an AL best 44 home runs in 2023. He also threw 132 innings with a 3.14 ERA and 167 strikeouts before hurting his elbow. That earned Ohtani his second AL MVP in three years. He is the first player ever to win multiple MVP awards unanimously.
