Two months have already gone by in the 2025 MLB season, but there is still a glimmer of hope that Shohei Ohtani will return as a pitcher at some point during it.
The Los Angeles Dodgers sensation Ohtani will progress this weekend to facing live hitters, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reported on Friday. Ardaya notes that this is the very first time that Ohtani will face live hitters since his September 2023 surgery on his right elbow.
Ohtani, who turns 31 years old in July, has not pitched at all for the Dodgers ever since his arrival before the 2024 season. The Dodgers are also exercising significant caution with Ohtani, especially since this is his second major surgery on his throwing elbow (after a 2018 Tommy John procedure).
The four-time MLB All-Star Ohtani continues to be a world-beater, even as just a one-way player for the time being. As the Dodgers’ full-time designated hitter, Ohtani won the NL MVP last year on the strength of MLB’s first-ever 50-homer, 50-stolen base season. Ohtani is still ripping this season as well with 17 home runs and 31 RBIs on a .304/.398/.655 slash line through 48 games.
As for his status on the mound, Ohtani recently progressed to throwing bullpen sessions and is reportedly sitting at around 94-95 mph on his fastballs while incorporating some breaking balls in there as well. You can read Ardaya’s full report on the situation here.
The Dodgers have mostly been mum on Ohtani’s progress towards a pitching return, particularly manager Dave Roberts’ most recent comments on the topic. But the expectation is that Ohtani will be back on the hill at some point after the All-Star break with an ultimate goal of being at full strength as a pitcher for the postseason.
