Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani Suffers Setback, Won't Pitch Sunday in Concerning Development

The Los Angeles Dodgers had been planning on Shohei Ohtani making his long-awaited return to pitching on Sunday in the team's series finale against the Detroit Tigers.

That won't be the case any longer.

Manager Dave Roberts announced after Saturday's loss to the Tigers that Ohtani will not be pitching on Sunday after suffering an apparent setback in his return to the mound.

"[Tyler Glasnow] is gonna start," Roberts said. “I think that just in total, Shohei hasn’t come out of [the bullpen] well. The arm, the knee.”

Dave Roberts said Shohei Ohtani will not pitch on Sunday. He also won't pitch on Tuesday.

“I think that just in total, Shohei hasn’t come out of [the bullpen] well. The arm, the knee.”

He said the Dodgers haven't decided if Ohtani will be shut down from pitching for some time. pic.twitter.com/LgYVjlyuuv
— Noah Camras (@noahcamras) August 29, 2026

Ohtani, who threw an abbreviated 20-pitch bullpen session on Friday, didn't come out of it feeling 100% healthy. Thus, he won't make his first pitching appearance since July 3 on Sunday, and it's currently unclear when he'll make a return to the mound.

Roberts also ruled him out to pitch on Tuesday in the series opener against the St. Louis Cardinals.

“The knee, the body, just throwing, pitching, not 100%,” Roberts said of Ohtani before Saturday's game. “What percent it is, I don’t know the answer.”

“The hard part right now is trying to figure out if he’s not 100% with the overall body, is it worth giving him an inning to build up or not,” he added. “So I think that’s kind of where we’re at right now, trying to weigh the positives and negatives.”

Ohtani initially stopped pitching due to a knee issue that forced him to miss All-Star festivities while he received a lubricant injection. Then, Ohtani also had an issue flare up in his bicep, something that's impacted him all year.

Roberts said Ohtani will likely play through both injuries for the remainder of the season.

“To be quite frank, I just don’t see everything getting to 100% by the end of the season,” Roberts said. “But there’s a lot of pitchers that are not 100% and still viable. So again, it’s just not an exact science.”

The Dodgers have maintained the importance of Ohtani's value at the top of their lineup, especially with their fully healthy starting rotation.

Thus, Roberts is not ready to compromise Ohtani the hitter at this stage in the season.

“I think 100%, for me, as far as an offensive player, that’s very important. As a pitcher, for me, given the strength of our staff, our team, I don’t think that’s as important,” Roberts said. “I think it’s important for us not to compromise his health in any capacity. But for me, it’s just his presence in the batter’s box is hugely important.”

The Dodgers currently have a rotation consisting of two-time Cy Young award winners Tarik Skubal and Blake Snell, reigning World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto and All-Star Tyler Glasnow. That, alone, is enough to carry a team through October.

“Where we’re at right now with the starting pitching certainly being a strength, his value offensively is hugely important, and so we can’t compromise that in any fashion,” Roberts said. “So, if throwing potentially cuts into that, that’s not worth the squeeze.

"Very, very bullish on making sure we don’t compromise the hitting.”

Will Shohei Ohtani Pitch Again This Season?

Roberts said it's a matter of "when" not "if" Ohtani will return to pitching this season.

At the same time, he seemed to leave the door open to Ohtani only hitting for the rest of the year.

“I think that as the competitor, he wants to do both and I respect it,” Roberts said. “But nothing I’m saying changes his identity as a two-way player. But I think in the moment, yeah, I mean, he still feels that there’s still an opportunity, and I’m not trying to say there isn’t.

"But I do think that at the end of the day, he’s very aware of our roster, strengths, weaknesses, and his value to the ball club, and whatever that means.”

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