Dodgers' Ohtani (knee) 'not 100%'; mound return uncertain

DETROIT -- Shohei Ohtani continued to feel discomfort in his left knee coming off his latest bullpen session, and the Los Angeles Dodgers are still unsure if he'll make his anticipated return to their starting rotation Sunday.

"I don't think he's 100%," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said before Saturday's game against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park.

Seven days ago, Ohtani's return to pitching appeared promising. He threw 30 pitches in a simulated game and planned to get off a mound again early in the ensuing week, while the team was in Atlanta. Assuming that went well, Ohtani was on track to rejoin the rotation thereafter.

But that bullpen was pushed to Friday and lasted only 20 pitches, 10 to 15 throws shorter than his typical between-starts session. The following day, Roberts reported that Ohtani is still not completely healthy.

The left knee that has kept him away from pitching in a game since July 3 continues to irritate him. The right biceps issue that flared up several weeks ago still hasn't completely gone away. Roberts said "the overall body" is sore, too. To what extent is unclear.

"That's the hard part right now," Roberts said, "is trying to figure out: If he's not 100% overall body, is it worth giving him a minute to build up or not?"

Ohtani operated like one of the best pitchers in the sport when healthy, going 8-2 with a 1.79 ERA in 14 starts, striking out 95 batters and issuing 26 walks in 85 innings through the first three months of this season.

The Dodgers value him on the mound, especially because his presence as a two-way player provides them with an extra pitcher. But his impact at the top of their lineup is even more important, especially with Tarik Skubal, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow easily making up a formidable four-man postseason rotation without him.

"His value offensively is hugely important, and so we can't compromise that in any fashion," Roberts said. "If throwing potentially cuts into that, that's not worth the squeeze."

If Ohtani were to start Sunday, he would pitch only the first inning. The extra roster spot allows him to essentially rehab in a major league setting, as he did while coming back from a second elbow surgery last summer. In that scenario, Glasnow would take down most of the innings behind him. If Ohtani doesn't start, Glasnow would simply start the series finale against the Tigers.

Starting Sunday's game would give Ohtani five turns through the rotation before the end of the regular season, giving him time to build up to something close to a traditional starting pitcher by October. But Roberts said even in that scenario, reaching five innings is "aggressive for anyone." He also doesn't foresee Ohtani getting to 100% health with his left knee while pitching at any point this season.

"But there's a lot of pitchers that are not 100% and still viable," Roberts said. "It's just not an exact science."br/]