LOS ANGELES -- After a minimum-length stay on the injured list, Shohei Ohtani is back in the Dodgers' lineup.
Ohtani was activated from the 15-day IL and inserted back in the Dodgers' lineup for Wednesday's game against the Padres at Dodger Stadium. Notably, Ohtani will bat second, sliding down from his customary leadoff spot, which will be occupied by Mookie Betts for Wednesday's game.
"For me, it’s just see the baseball, just take good at-bats," manager Dave Roberts said. "I'm not expecting too much. It's been a while since he's played, but it's just good to get him in there."
Ohtani has appeared in only three games for L.A. this month, last playing on Sept. 7, when his lingering right biceps and left knee injuries worsened to the extent that the team decided he needed an extended period of rest in order to get right for the postseason.
Top prospect Josue De Paula was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City in a corresponding move for Ohtani's activation, with Tarik Skubal returning from the bereavement list and Kyle Hurt also optioned to Triple-A.
Ohtani will return only as a hitter, as his attempt to ramp back up as a pitcher in August coincided with the flareup of his biceps and knee injuries, which he had dealt with since at least June. In his 24 games before going on the IL, he hit .198 (19-for-96) with 34 strikeouts.
Overall, Ohtani recorded a .902 OPS and hit a team-leading 30 homers before landing on the IL for the first time in his three seasons as a Dodger.
"I think there's no question it affected him, and I think the fact that he feels as good as he does right now is certainly encouraging," president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said. "Now it's about making sure that holds."
Ohtani's return comes with five games remaining in the regular season, and he is expected to play in all of them in order to make up for the at-bats he missed. He was unable to face live pitching while on the IL, instead taking coach batting practice and hitting off the Trajekt machine, which simulates real pitchers.
San Diego is starting southpaw Robbie Ray on Wednesday, which factors into Ohtani's move out of the leadoff spot. Roberts said he will lean toward a platoon at the top of the lineup, with Betts leading off against left-handers and Ohtani leading off against right-handers.
"I think it just makes it tougher to navigate vs. left," Roberts said. "There's a Mookie tax, if you want to get to Freddie. There's a Will Smith tax. I like that. And vs. a right-hander, I like kind of flipping [Betts and Ohtani] for the same reasons."
The Dodgers were without Ohtani in the lineup for 17 of their last 18 games, but they have fared well even without their best hitter. Through Tuesday, L.A. had only lost three games since losing Ohtani to the IL.
While Ohtani is not expected to come back feeling quite 100 percent, Roberts described him as "considerably" better compared with when he went on the IL. According to Friedman, Ohtani said he feels as good as he did earlier in the season.
"It's one thing to feel that way for any player coming back from the IL," Friedman said. "As they are coming back, it's important for them to feel that way. And when you're coming back, now the question is, as you start to load on real games and that intensity and that workload, it's making sure that what we've done keeps guys in position to be at their best."
With their most meaningful games of the year fast approaching, the Dodgers will take whatever Ohtani can do for them moving forward.