LOS ANGELES -- With every game that Shohei Ohtani misses, the Dodgers must decide whether they are better served by placing him on the injured list or continuing to play shorthanded.
Ohtani was out of the starting lineup for the fourth straight game for Sunday night's game against the Nationals at Dodger Stadium. He is managing multiple health concerns, including lingering issues with his left knee, right biceps and neck.
The Dodgers have no expectation of when Ohtani could return to the starting lineup, and he is still considered day to day. He has worked out the past several days, including hitting in the cage throughout Saturday's game.
Now that Ohtani has been out of action for more than three days -- the maximum length of time that an IL stint can be backdated -- L.A. must weigh whether it makes sense to make an IL move with Ohtani imminently. The minimum-length IL stint for two-way players is 15 days, like with pitchers -- which manager Dave Roberts said was somewhat of a "deterrent" as the team mulls over the decision.
Dating back to June, Ohtani has dealt with multiple lingering physical issues, including left knee soreness that has been the primary reason that he has not pitched since July 3. A right biceps issue first affected him as a hitter, then went on to affect his pitching ramp-up. He showed visible discomfort in the last game he started on Wednesday, going 0-for-4 with four strikeouts, with Roberts later revealing that Ohtani's neck was bothering him.
Ohtani has not spoken to the media since Aug. 17 in Colorado, declining multiple requests for comment in that span.
Since Ohtani restarted a throwing program on Aug. 8, he is hitting .204 (19-for-93) with a .704 OPS. He has struck out 32 times in that span. Overall this season, Ohtani has a .906 OPS with 30 homers and a 1.79 ERA in 14 pitching starts.