Shohei Ohtani took another step toward a return to the mound on Saturday, with the Los Angeles Dodgers star throwing his first official bullpen session of the spring.
Ohtani, who didn't pitch last season as he recovered from surgery to repair a ligament in his right elbow in Sept. 2023 and then underwent surgery on his left shoulder in November, is expected to be ready to both hit and pitch for the Dodgers this season.
The Dodgers don't expect Ohtani to pitch in spring training games, and manager Dave Roberts has said he won't pitch when the Dodgers open the regular season in Japan next month.
Roberts, however, has said Ohtani could face live hitters in March and could be in the team's rotation sometime in May.
"The ball was coming out really good," Roberts said of Ohtani's delivery off the mound. "I think he seemed pretty pleased with it. The command was good, ball was coming out good.
"Really positive day for Shohei."
Ohtani will continue to be a key figure in the Dodgers' batting lineup as he gradually builds up the intensity of his pitching in practice and likely through simulated games.
Ohtani, who served as a two-way hitting and pitching threat during most of his first six seasons in MLB with the Los Angeles Angels, signed a free-agent deal with the Dodgers in December 2023 for 10 years at $700 million, the richest contract in U.S. sports history at the time.
Even though he didn't pitch last season, he was named the National League MVP after a historic 2024 campaign that saw him become the first player with 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season.
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