Two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani will neither take the mound Friday against the Arizona Diamondbacks nor participate in the All-Star Game next week, the Dodgers announced.
Ohtani will still serve as the designated hitter through the weekend series, the team said. But the irritation in his left knee, which is aggravated by pitching, has not resolved. So, over the All-Star Break, he will undergo “some interventions.” The Dodgers did not specify what that would entail but said Ohtani would not travel to Philadelphia for the All-Star Game.
Ohtani, who entered Friday with a .939 OPS, the third-best mark among qualified NL hitters, and a 1.79, the second-best mark among NL pitchers with at least 50 innings pitched, has been dealing with irritation in his knee for roughly a month.
He exited the Dodgers’ game on June 11 against the Pirates with inflammation in his left knee and sat out the next day. But he’s played through the issue since. Friday will be the first time Ohtani has missed a pitching start this season because of the knee injury.
Ohtani said then that he suspected issues with his pitching mechanics were to blame for the injury. He did not say whether he believed his previous kneecap condition — Ohtani underwent surgery in 2019 to address the bipartite patella in his left knee — was connected.
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