Shohei Ohtani’s 2026 season was shaping up to be one of his most impressive two-way campaigns for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
With Shohei Ohtani placed on the 15-day Injured List, he is now facing his first stint on the IL since September 2023, when he was a member of the Los Angeles Angels.
Since then, Ohtani has seemingly been healthy and able to participate in almost every game for the Los Angeles Dodgers since joining the team in 2024. This marks the first time since then that he will miss notable time with the Dodgers.
Looking specifically at what Ohtani has accomplished this season at the plate and on the mound, 2026 was shaping up to be the year in which he would finally excel in both roles at full capacity.
Ohtani returned to the mound in 2025, but 2026 looked like the year in which he would finally be able to pitch without significant restrictions. For a while this season, he even made a case for his first Cy Young Award.
An 8-2 record with a 1.79 ERA across 14 starts certainly looked like the type of production that could put him in the conversation. However, injuries would play a major factor in preventing him from achieving that goal. Pitching in a very competitive National League division would not make that case any easier.
Still, when looking at his numbers, this was perhaps Ohtani’s best pitching season in a very long while.
What really stands out about Ohtani’s transition from the Angels to the Dodgers is his inning count. From 2021 through 2023, Ohtani was frequently a pitcher who would throw more than 130 innings.
Since joining the Dodgers, that has not been the case. Obviously, injuries have played a factor, but the way the Dodgers have seemingly limited his pitching workload makes the reasoning fairly simple. The Dodgers appear to be looking toward longevity more than short-term impact.
That could be why the organization has been so strict with Ohtani’s pitching regimen. Being able to do what Ohtani does is extremely rare and, in most cases, nearly impossible given the structure of modern baseball.
But his hitting has been no less impressive than his work on the mound.
Perhaps Ohtani is an even better hitter than he is a pitcher. Since joining the Dodgers, he has seemingly matched his WAR production as a hitter with 19.1 across three seasons, compared to 19.6 with the Angels.
Those numbers showcase just how good Ohtani has been as a hitter with the Dodgers. Perhaps what stands out most about his profile is his ability to be a seemingly complete hitter.
You started to see that more in 2023 when he won his second MVP Award, but since coming to the Dodgers, Ohtani has continued to show his ability to hit for average and get on base at a very high clip.
The numbers he has put up since joining the Dodgers have been remarkable. Ohtani was once again in the mix to win his fourth straight MVP, but after going down with an injury and facing competition from Pete Crow-Armstrong, those chances became much more difficult to achieve.
This season, Ohtani really came into his own as a hitter. At the plate, he posted a 3.5 WAR across 130 games, hitting .277 with a .380 on-base percentage, a .902 OPS and a 147 OPS+. His 30 home runs on the year certainly make the case for a dominant season.
Again, this was really his first season as a full-time hitter and full-time pitcher before injuries interrupted that opportunity. While his numbers were impressive on their own, seeing what Ohtani was able to accomplish in both roles was even more impressive given the context.
Now, the Dodgers will have to find that production elsewhere.
Perhaps they could find some of it with top prospect Josue De Paula, who has been one of the best prospects in the Dodgers organization and one of the best prospects in all of baseball.
There are certainly things De Paula still has to work on, most notably his defensive skills, which have been one of the weaknesses in his prospect profile. However, his hitting numbers and tools have taken a huge step forward this past season.
That makes his promotion a remarkable moment for a Dodgers prospect. De Paula is the first position player Andrew Friedman has called up directly from Double-A, and he will likely be put to the test Friday, when he is expected to arrive in Miami.
As for Ohtani, the Dodgers will likely continue to evaluate him and work toward getting him healthy. He will not pitch for the remainder of the 2026 season, but the hope will be that he can return in time for the postseason in October and help the Dodgers win their third World Series championship.
