Shohei Ohtani May 23, 2025; New York City, New York, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) waits on deck during the third inning against the New York Mets at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images
By Reice Shipley on

Shohei Ohtani has been one of the most valuable players in all of baseball since joining the Dodgers last season. And soon, he could be even more valuable for the Dodgers by providing some support to their already stacked pitching staff.

Ohtani hasn’t pitched in a game since August of 2023 after undergoing his second career Tommy John surgery to repair the ligaments in his right elbow. But fortunately, it seems as if Ohtani should be returning to the mound soon.

On Friday, Deesha Thosar of Fox Sports reported that Ohtani will pitch to major-league hitters for the first time in over a year and a half on Saturday when he throws a live batting practice session at Citi Field.

It will certainly be interesting to see what kind of stuff Ohtani has in his live batting practice session on Saturday. Prior to the injury, Ohtani was undoubtedly one of the more fascinating and overall productive pitchers in all of baseball, sporting a 3.01 career ERA in the five seasons he has pitched.

Fans around the MLB should certainly be worried that the Dodgers may be getting another elite pitcher into their rotation in short order. But ultimately, it’s great for baseball that Ohtani is set to return to being a two-way player again as long as his batting practice stint goes well.

Naturally, fans were thrilled with this news, detailing their excitement about Ohtani’s looming return as a pitcher in a number of posts on social media.

About Reice Shipley

Reice Shipley is a staff writer for Comeback Media that graduated from Ithaca College with a degree in Sports Media. He previously worked at Barrett Sports Media and is a fan of all things Syracuse sports.

View all posts by Reice Shipley