Shohei Ohtani expected to undergo elbow surgery
Aug 8, 2023; Anaheim, California, USA; Los Angeles Angels designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) watches from the dugout in the first inning against the San Francisco Giants at Angel Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
Shohei Ohtani’s season is over as both a pitcher and hitter.
The Los Angeles Angels two-way star was already out for the season as a pitcher after an MRI last month revealed that he has a tear in his UCL. On Saturday, the Angels said that Ohtani was being shut down as a hitter too due to his oblique injury.
Ohtani last served as a designated hitter on Sept. 3 and has been out since hurting his oblique in batting practice a day later. He last pitched on Aug. 23.
Angels GM Perry Minasian said Saturday that an MRI on Friday showed that Ohtani would not be able to return this season.
Minasian said an MRI of Ohtani’s oblique yesterday showed he wasn’t going to be able to play again this year, so he had his stuff packed to prepare for a potential elbow procedure as soon as today. It is not today, though. Minasian doesn’t know yet when it or what it will be
— Jeff Fletcher (@JeffFletcherOCR) September 16, 2023
Minasian also said that Ohtani cleared out his locker in the Angels’ clubhouse on Friday night after getting the news about his oblique. Ohtani is still expected to join the team for home games.
The 2021 AL MVP is also expected to undergo some sort of procedure on his elbow in the near future.
Perry Minasian said that Shohei Ohtani got an MRI at 4 p.m. yesterday. After getting the results around the first inning, they started packing up.
Minasian anticipates him getting a surgical procedure for his UCL soon. Said he doesn’t know the procedure.
— Sam Blum (@SamBlum3) September 16, 2023
Ohtani is a free agent after the season and widely expected to sign with a new team.
Despite being limited to 135 games as a batter, Ohtani still leads the AL in triples (8), home runs (44), walks (91) and on-base percentage (.412). He is favored to win AL MVP for the second time in his career.
