The Dodgers' season ended Thursday night with Shohei Ohtani standing in the on-deck circle, ready to hit.
His season as a two-way player effectively ended back in July, when multiple injuries -- chiefly left knee inflammation and right biceps inflammation -- compromised his ability on the mound. It also affected his production at the plate and reportedly led to a discussion about whether he should be benched during the team's National League Championship Series versus the Brewers. Instead, Ohtani batted sixth in Game 3 before moving back into his customary leadoff spot -- and homering -- in Game 4.
But the 32-year-old left no doubt about his intentions for next season: He wants to get back to hitting and pitching.
"Yes, definitely," Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton when asked after Los Angeles' season-ending 6-4 loss to the Brewers if he plans to pitch in 2027. "And looking forward to having a better season next year."
It is unclear, however, if Ohtani's path back to pitching will include some type of offseason procedure.
"Hard to tell at this point," he said. "It's something that's going to be analyzed, discussed over the offseason, and see if that's a viable thing to do."
Ohtani was fantastic when he was able to pitch in '26. He produced a 1.79 ERA and limited hitters to a .179 average over 85 2/3 innings. However, Ohtani began dealing with pain in his left knee on June 11 and last pitched on July 3.
Over his final four starts -- spanning from June 10 through that final date -- Ohtani allowed 12 earned runs in 24 2/3 innings. Prior to that point, he had allowed only five earned runs in 61 frames. He landed on the 15-day injured list in September due to the biceps inflammation. The minimum-length stay marked his first trip to the IL in nearly three years.
"[I'm] not quite satisfied with how things shaped up on the pitching side at the end of the year," Ohtani said Thursday. "This year, I haven't pitched, and I haven't pitched in the postseason. I haven't been able to really come to grips in terms of what I've learned overall this season. It's something that I'm going to kind of go back to the drawing board in terms of treatment, training program, and see what I can come up with for next season."
Only three starters with at least 500 innings in the Divisional Era (since 1969) have a career ERA better than Ohtani's 2.83: Jim Palmer (2.80), Jacob deGrom (2.73) and Clayton Kershaw (2.53). A four-time MVP, Ohtani finished fourth in the American League Cy Young Award voting in 2022 while with the Angels. He has also struck out 28 batters over 20 1/3 playoff innings during his time with the Dodgers.
His body would not allow him to contribute as a pitcher this October, but he hopes it's a different story next season.