Shohei Ohtani Injury Update What Happened to Shohei Ohtani?
Shohei Ohtani fans kinda live on a rollercoaster, y’know? Just when things start looking smooth, something wild happens, and this week—yep, here we go again. Dodger fans barely got a minute to exhale before Ohtani, in the middle of only his seventh pitching start since that major elbow surgery, suddenly walked off the mound in Cincinnati. Kinda jarring, honestly, given how careful the team’s been ramping him back up all year.
He was out there doing his thing until, in the fourth inning, his control just left the building—six balls in a row, some not even close. Pretty obvious from the TV angle, something was off, even if he tried to play it cool. Then the trainer and Dave Roberts had that little “private” convo on the mound, and next thing you know he’s heading straight for the dugout.
People online, in the seats, at bars—everyone held their breath. Ohtani is LA’s main attraction right now, and even a small thing like this freaks people out for good reason.
Out on Twitter, @espn posted: “Shohei Ohtani left his start in the middle of an at-bat after throwing six consecutive balls.” Video’s everywhere already and, predictably, some haters are piling on, but mostly it’s just worry and a little exhaustion—no one wants another lost season for this guy.
But here’s the reassuring bit for Dodgers fans: pretty much right after that scary exit, Dodgers officials said it was cramps. Seriously—just cramps. Ohtani even stayed in as the DH. As Kirsten Watson shared from the SportsNet LA broadcast, there was, to quote, “a clear sense of relief” in the dugout when he came back.
For all the drama, he still looked like he wanted to grab a bat, which, in this situation, has to be the best possible news. Knocks on wood.
What’s wild is, the team’s been ridiculously cautious with him. They’ve treated every pitching appearance like a mini-rehab session, bumping up the innings super slowly, trying to keep his bat in the lineup without risking that surgically repaired UCL.
Feels like the whole city’s holding its breath every time he pitches, and that’s not even an exaggeration. And yeah, considering Ohtani’s been open about how past injuries made him feel “useless” and “frustrated,” this kind of thing clearly isn’t easy for him either. Watching him slog through that fourth inning, you could see it on his face—guy’s human.
Flipping over to Instagram, the noise doesn’t really slow down. A recent post—“Shohei Ohtani can't be stopped right now”—almost feels like a jinx in hindsight, but the comments are a mix of birthday wishes, support, and a little concern for his health after last night. The real ones never doubt, but everyone’s a little nervous, honestly.
So what do you make of it? I guess if you’re optimistic, Ohtani comes out of this with nothing but a dehydration reminder. Doesn’t take much for panic to set in, though.
You can’t help but think back on that shoulder injury in the World Series last fall and his history of fighting through stuff that would bench most players for a month. At some point, you gotta wonder if there’s a limit, even for a unicorn like Ohtani.
Anyway, seems like we all get to exhale—at least for now. Dodgers’ postseason hopes still hinge on his health, and honestly, the way he bounces back from this short blip will say a lot about how things go from here. Just, please, someone get this guy some extra electrolytes or something before next week.
