The whole world is watching! Ohtani announces the resumption of pitching and hitting, will he take the big league mound for the first time in 663 days and throw 100 miles
Jun 17, 2025
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LA Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani will take the mound in the Major League for the first time in a year and 10 months. He will start at 11:10 a.m. on the 17th (Korea time) against the San Diego Padres at Dodger Stadium.
He will take the mound in the big league for the first time in 663 days since Game 1 of the home doubleheader against the Cincinnati Reds on August 24, 2023, when he was with the Los Angeles Angels. Ohtani suffered a right elbow injury at the time, ending his season as a pitcher and receiving Tommy John Surgery.
Ohtani, who signed a 10-year, $700 million FA contract at the end of that year and moved to the Dodgers, and played only as a designated hitter, finally announces the resumption of 'Double Pitching'.
In an interview with local media after hitting two home runs against the San Francisco Giants on the 15th, Ohtani said of the pitcher's return "(3rd live pitching), "I've finished preparing for the game," adding, "I think it's normal to return to the pitching double as usual." Last season was not normal for me. Back to the figure I'm used to..." it gave meaning.
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After the game against San Francisco the previous day (16th), the Dodgers announced "Otani will play the opener against San Diego tomorrow."
Shortly after that, manager Dave Roberts said, `Otani played pitching rehabilitation in various ways, including live pitching and simulated games. Now I'm ready to take the mound "Otani doesn't need a typical starter build-up process. You can throw one or two innings and continue to increase the number of innings in the future. In the current situation, it seems desirable for Ohtani to throw one or two innings as a starter. There is something to gain, nothing to lose. This is what our situation is like now."
Ohtani is expected to pitch one inning as the club expressed 'opener'. If there is room for the number of pitches, two innings are also possible, but throwing more than 30 pitches is likely to be avoided.
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On top of that, you should also look at the completeness of other pitches such as sweepers, splitters, cutters, and curves. In particular, the sweeper has emerged as Ohtani's main weapon with hit rates of 0.165 and 0.146 in 2022 and 2023, with the focus on the end of the ball and control as it accounts for more than 65% along with the fastball.
Although it is not a direct showdown, it will be interesting to compare it to the pitching of San Diego starter Dylan Sheese. Sizu is similar to Ohtani in that he throws a fastball of nearly 100 miles and a slider as his main weapon. Sliders and sweepers are similar pitches with only a difference in grip.
Of course, Ohtani also stands at bat, a leadoff. It's the day to start a double whammy.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
