Dave Roberts Explains Dodgers’ Plan to Manage Shohei Ohtani

The Dodgers are no longer treating every Shohei Ohtani absence as a decision that needs to be made solely around that night's game.

Their focus is October.

Manager Dave Roberts made that clear Tuesday while explaining why Ohtani was out of the starting lineup one day after returning from a four-game absence.

Ohtani came through Monday's game well physically, according to Roberts. There was no newly announced injury and no indication that he suffered another setback during the Dodgers' 6-3 victory over Cincinnati.

Instead, the decision came after conversations with the medical staff about bringing him back gradually.

“Came out of [Monday] well,” Roberts said, before explaining that the Dodgers' approach is to “build him up slowly.”

That distinction is important.

The Dodgers aren't reacting to another injury scare.

They're trying to prevent one.

Dodgers Looking Beyond One Game

Roberts said the club could give Ohtani additional proactive days off during the remaining weeks of the regular season.

The goal is straightforward: make sure their biggest star enters the postseason feeling as close to full strength as realistically possible.

“It’s not about just tonight. It’s about, ‘What can we do to get him to be optimum as we get into the postseason?’ I think that a day here or there is not the worst thing to make sure that his body overall feels as close to 100% as possible.”

Ohtani has been managing lingering issues involving his right biceps and left knee, along with recent neck discomfort. Those ailments previously caused him to miss four consecutive games before returning Monday.

He went 0-for-3 with a walk and two strikeouts in his return.

But his stat line wasn't what Roberts was evaluating most closely.

The Dodgers wanted to see how Ohtani's body responded the following day.

The answer was encouraging enough that he remained available to pinch-hit Tuesday, with Roberts saying he could use Ohtani “in a big spot.”

Ohtani Expected Back Wednesday

Roberts said Tuesday that he expected Ohtani to return to the lineup for Wednesday's series finale against Cincinnati.

The Dodgers then have an off day Thursday before opening a road series in Miami on Friday, when Roberts also expects Ohtani to play.

That schedule illustrates what the Dodgers are trying to accomplish.

Rather than immediately asking Ohtani to play every day again after a four-game layoff, Los Angeles can give him another recovery day, get him back Wednesday and then take advantage of Thursday's scheduled off day.

It is a controlled ramp-up rather than a return to his normal workload all at once.

Ohtani Acknowledges He Isn't 100 Percent

Ohtani also acknowledged after Monday's game that he does not feel completely healthy.

He said the reality of continuing to play makes full recovery difficult, since complete rest would obviously give his body the best opportunity to heal. At the same time, Ohtani wants to remain available and help the Dodgers during the stretch run.

That creates the balance Roberts and the medical staff are trying to manage.

The Dodgers need Ohtani.

They also don't need him playing every September game if occasional rest increases the chances that he is healthier when the postseason begins.

Roberts even acknowledged that this season has provided a learning experience for everyone involved in managing the workload of a player doing something essentially unprecedented.

This was Ohtani's first season handling full two-way duties from the beginning of the year as a Dodger. Roberts said the organization has learned that, despite how extraordinary Ohtani may appear, his body still has limits like any other player.

Pitching No Longer Driving the Decision

The workload equation has also become simpler because the Dodgers have put Ohtani's throwing program on hold.

There is currently no timetable for him to pick up a baseball again, and Ohtani has said he “most likely” will not pitch again this season. Roberts has still stopped short of officially declaring his pitching season over.

For now, the Dodgers are prioritizing his work as a hitter, his running and his overall physical condition.

That means there is less reason to push him through every regular-season game.

The Dodgers already have a deep postseason rotation.

What they cannot replace is a healthy version of Ohtani at the top of their lineup.

This Is Management, Not Another Setback

Ohtani missing five of six games naturally creates concern.

But Tuesday's absence needs to be viewed in the proper context.

Roberts specifically said Ohtani responded well physically after playing Monday.

There was no new diagnosis.

There was no newly announced aggravation of the knee or biceps.

And the Dodgers expected him back Wednesday.

This is simply a team with postseason ambitions deciding that September 8 is less important than having Shohei Ohtani as healthy as possible when October arrives.

Roberts' message was clear.

A day off here or there is a trade the Dodgers are willing to make.

If those days help Ohtani get closer to 100 percent when the games matter most, Los Angeles will consider them well worth it.