Shohei Ohtani could return to the mound very soon for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Before Saturday night's victory en route to five straight wins for the Los Angeles Dodgers against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Shohei Ohtani leaped his pitching progression.
Ohtani threw a 30-pitch live session at Dodger Stadium, all against Will Smith, who is on his own rehab path and set to begin rehab appearances in the minors next Tuesday.
Manager Dave Roberts addressed the media via SportsNetLA and laid out the next steps for Ohtani's pitching plan, which could lead to his return to the mound as soon as next week.
Roberts said that Ohtani will throw just a bullpen session when the team travels to play the Atlanta Braves. From there, Roberts and Co. will debrief on how Ohtani feels coming out of the pen.
Depending on how he feels, Ohtani could make his return to the mound as early as next week, or Roberts would need to see him throw one more live session.
"I think it’s more of how the ‘pen goes and, to be quite honest, how Shohei feels," Roberts said.
When Ohtani was being built up last year for a two-way role, it was a steady climb to get him to a place where he could be a regular starting pitcher through and through.
Fast forward to 2026, and the Dodgers finding themselves in a tight race for playoff positioning with September looming in the distance, the buildup will be "a little bit more aggressive," according to Roberts.
When Ohtani eventually returns to the mound, Roberts said Eric Lauer, who made his transition to the bullpen, will follow him up after his start, eating up the bulk of the innings.
For the foreseeable future, Roberts does not have a specific day in which Lauer will make his next start. But the Dodgers plan to keep Lauer on standby in case anything goes awry with Ohtani's buildup in any way.
If Ohtani comes out of his bullpen in Atlanta well enough to proceed, he could make his return during the Dodgers' homestand at the beginning of September. In that lengthy nine-game home stand, they open up playing the St. Louis Cardinals, followed up by the Washington Nationals, and capped off with the Cincinnati Reds.
More than likely, Ohtani will start against the Cardinals or Nationals series.
In the meantime, Tyler Glasnow will make his first start coming off the Injured List on Tuesday against the Braves. Roki Sasaki will toe the slab on Wednesday, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto closes things on Thursday.
