LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Saturday that two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani will not play for Japan in the World Baseball Classic in March.
Roberts said Ohtani decided to focus solely on being a designated hitter in his home country.
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He said the team would “absolutely” support Ohtani if he also wanted to run. Ohtani’s teammate and World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto will represent Japan in the WBC despite having a heavy workload with the Dodgers last season.
“Yoshi feels like he wants to take it and feels good about it and we support him,” Roberts said at the team’s fan event.
Ohtani made two starts for Japan in the 2023 WBC before coming out of the bullpen in the ninth inning to strike out then-Los Angeles Angels teammate Mike Trout in the final game against the Americans to seal the title.
Ohtani tore his ulnar collateral ligament in August of that year and later underwent elbow surgery, which prevented him from pitching in his first season with the Dodgers in 2024, when he was the Dodgers’ full-time designated hitter.
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He gradually returned to pitching last year and made four postseason starts as the Dodgers won their second straight World Series title.
Speaking to reporters in front of Roberts, Ohtani did not confirm his decision not to fight with the WBC. The four-time MVP said through a translator that he had to “see how my body feels, feel the progress and see what happens.”
Ohtani, 31, said his offseason was normal because he has yet to recover from injuries.
“I’m healthy,” he said. “I’m very happy.”
Roberts said he won’t manage Ohtani any differently now that he’s about to play a full season. He said there will be plenty of rest days between games and Ohtani will not schedule any more two- or three-inning games.
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Ohtani, Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki are teammates on the 2023 WBC championship team in Japan. But Sasaki won’t be available this time, coming off a rocky rookie season that saw him exit the Dodgers’ bullpen.
The WBC competition is from March 5-17.
Roberts is considering his starting lineup before the team reports for spring training in Arizona on Feb. 13.
“It feels great to have Shohei in the lead. It also feels great to have Will (Smith) play the five, and after that, I’ll read and react,” he said. “You’re definitely going to see Mookie (Betts) at the three.”
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