Ohtani (knee) out of Fri. lineup vs. White Sox, but it's 'not an IL situation'
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CHICAGO -- One night after he was removed from Thursday's 8-6 win over the Pirates with left knee inflammation, two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani was out of the Dodgers' lineup for their series opener against the White Sox on Friday at Rate Field.
Ohtani underwent imaging on his knee, which did not reveal any structural damage. Just as Ohtani was pulled from Thursday's game as a precaution, the decision to leave him out of the lineup on Friday was proactivity from the Dodgers. They hope he will be back in action at some point this weekend.
"My hope is that he’s in there tomorrow. But if not, he’ll need another day," manager Dave Roberts said Friday. "But it’s something that I think we can manage. Not an IL situation. And just seeing him today, he feels fine-ish. But just giving him an extra day is the smart thing to do.”
The Dodgers also hope that this injury will also not affect Ohtani's next pitching start, which is projected to come against the Rays next Wednesday afternoon at Dodger Stadium.
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Not only does Ohtani lead the National League with a .964 OPS, he also leads Major Leaguers who have thrown at least 50 innings with a 1.06 ERA. Losing him on either side of the ball would be a huge blow to the Dodgers, but they believe that being proactive will keep him on the field once he's feeling good enough to return to the lineup.
Ohtani has dealt with left knee issues multiple times in his career, notably undergoing surgery to repair a bipartite patella in September 2019. This time around, the discomfort Ohtani is feeling is more toward the back of his knee.
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“He said that there was some soreness in the back, and then that’s where the swelling is at. But that’s where a lot of the swelling with the knee kind of builds," Roberts said. "But again, his range of motion today is good. So if it was another time of the season, he’d be in there.”
With Ohtani out, left fielder Alex Call hit in the leadoff spot in his place. Santiago Espinal filled in at designated hitter, with the Dodgers stacking right-handed hitters against White Sox left-hander Anthony Kay.