NEW YORK – As the Dodgers took the field for Sunday evening’s workout, Shohei Ohtani was nowhere to be seen, but all things considered the prognosis still seems good for the Dodgers and their superstar.
Ohtani partially dislocated his left shoulder on a stolen base attempt in Game 2 of the World Series Saturday night, silencing the crowd at Dodger Stadium and leading to questions about his availability as the series shifts to New York with Los Angeles leading 2-0.
But Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Sunday evening that Ohtani was feeling better already with enough strength and range of motion to play in Game 3 barring unexpected setbacks.
“That’s my expectation, given talking to the training staff and getting the reports,” Roberts said. “He’s got to still go through (Sunday’s) workout and swing the bat, but today feels better than yesterday, and our assumption is tomorrow’s going to feel better than today. So with that, that’s what I’m banking on.
After icing his shoulder post-game, Ohtani had imaging done on it, delaying his arrival to Yankee Stadium. He flew separately from his teammates, who got to work without him on a cool night in The Bronx.
“The best baseball player in the world,” said Dodgers Game 3 starter Walker Buehler. “He frees up some of the other guys to kind of play with a little less pressure or a little more freedom. However, you want to say it.
“Shohei’s been great,” Buehler continued. “He’s been awesome for the clubhouse and awesome for our team.”
Ohtani has already taken some practice swings – dry swings, as Roberts put it – with the expectation that he’ll soon hit off a tee and take batting practice to further test his shoulder. But ultimately, it might come down to pain threshold for Ohtani, MLB’s first and only 50 homer-50 stolen base player.
“It’s just per his tolerance,” Roberts said. “That’s just what it is. So I guess you could put it in the Freddie (Freeman) bucket. Guys have had this before and played, but again, it’s just everyone’s tolerance.”
As of Sunday evening, Roberts said the Dodgers had ‘doctors scrambling everywhere’ to be sure their $700 million superstar is getting the best treatment possible. But at this point, the hope is Ohtani’s swing won’t be impacted as much because he bats left-handed.
“I don’t see him being compromised,” Roberts said. “It’s the left shoulder, which is the back shoulder. So I don’t see how that affects his hitting, if he’s able to go. I really don’t.”
As for the Yankees, Sunday was a full travel day with no team workout at Yankee Stadium after consecutive tough losses in Los Angeles. In New York, the focus is intensifying around Aaron Judge, the AL MVP favourite who hit 58 home runs in the regular season only to struggle in the post-season.
Judge is one for nine with six strikeouts so far in the World Series, and the strikeouts started spiking in the ALCS. Over his last five games, the typically disciplined Judge has struck out in 13 of his 22 at-bats while drawing just one walk (it was intentional).
It’s a small sample, to be sure, but then again, so is the World Series. If the Yankees are going to come back in this one, they’ll need more from their lineup. Ideally, that would include production from struggling hitters like Alex Verdugo and Austin Wells, too, but it likely needs to start with Judge.
As expected, then, the superstars in this World Series are taking centre stage. So far, it hasn’t gone according to plan for either side whether due to injury or underperformance. Then again, there’s still time for both those narratives to flip.
