Andrew Friedman Shares Insight Into Shohei Ohtani's Pitching Plan

Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers took a methodical approach with his return to pitching last season, and now look to navigate a full year on the mound.

Ohtani's progression and buildup has been interrupted by the World Baseball Classic, where he is only participating as a designated hitter for Team Japan. But the Dodgers otherwise are operating from the stance of the right-hander being more of a traditional pitcher in 2026.

"Obviously last year was coming back from surgery, so we were very deliberate about a lot of things. This year we will be less so, but still mindful of it," president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said.

"It's a heavy, heavy load that he takes on, and it's different from every other player in baseball. So I think a lot of it is reading and reacting. So I think through March, having a throwing program and making sure he's getting his ups, his arm is in a good place, and then we'll hopefully get him into a Freeway Series game and put him in our rotation.

"We'll figure out from there how we progress. Some of it is how he is at that point. But a lot of it is going to be reading and reacting, how he's feeling, how he's recovering, what the load looks like. But at some point, stepping up that level of aggression as we get deeper into the season.

"That will be a little bit different than last year."

Because he couldn't be sent out on a rehab assignment and in turn removed from the lineup, the Dodgers initially had Ohtani facing batters hours before a game. He determined that to be too taxing and effectively completed a rehab assignment at the Major League level.

Ohtani completed one inning in each of his first two starts, then stretched out to two frames in the both of the two outings that followed. Then came three consecutive outings of three or three-plus innings pitched.

Ohtani remained on that steady progression through the summer and culminating with a season-high six innings in his final start of the year. That left Ohtani fully stretched out for the postseason, when he completed six innings in three of four starts.

The lone exception came in Game 7 of the World Series, which Ohtani started on only three days of rest.

Shohei Ohtani trying to keep pitching schedule

Before leaving Camelback Ranch to join Samurai Japan for the World Baseball Classic, Ohtani acknowledged he would need to find ways to keep throwing off a mound, whether through bullpen sessions or facing batters on off days in the schedule.

Friedman anticipates Ohtani being in the Dodgers' Opening Day rotation, but the team has not yet identified which game he would start.