Before Shohei Ohtani decides whether he’ll compete in this year’s Home Run Derby, his team is speaking out about concerns about his potential inclusion.
Before the Dodgers’ 4-0 win over the White Sox on Wednesday, manager Dave Roberts expressed concern regarding his star player’s elbow, which was surgically repaired last season and has kept him from pitching.
This, in part with all of the swings that Ohtani would take in the derby, could be a cause for concern for Los Angeles.
“I don’t ever want to be the guy that says you can’t do it, because I wouldn’t want to have somebody tell me I couldn’t do it,” Roberts said. “But the surgery adds a different component. It’s rounds and rounds of [swings].”
“The one side of it, for him to be in the Home Run Derby, it’s great for baseball, clearly,” he added. “The other side of it, on the manager of the Dodgers side of it, you’re trying to be more cautious and appreciating the fact that there’s a lot more swings, higher intensity, you know, going through the rehab process with his elbow.”
Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts watching game from the dugout.AP
Ohtani, who is recovering from his second torn UCL in his seven-year MLB career, expressed interest in returning to the Home Run Derby this July.
“I don’t know,” Ohtani said through an interpreter. “I have to get an offer first. I’m also rehabilitating, so I need the doctor’s approval and the trainers’ approval and the team’s approval.”
“Of course, I have feelings of wanting to do it. I think any player would. I think it depends on how it lines up with the other parts.”
Ohtani, 29, took part in the derby once during his six-year tenure with the Angels, teaming up with slugger Juan Soto for a first-round showdown at Coors Field in Colorado in 2021.
He smashed 28 bombs, with two exceeding 500 feet, though he unfortunately fell short of Soto’s 31 homers and was eliminated.
Juan Soto of the Washington Nationals hugging Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels at the 2021 Home Run Derby.Getty Images
Ohtani, who signed a 10-year, $700-million deal with the Dodgers in December, is leading the league in average (.322), home runs (25), and OPS (1.045) this season.
In Wednesday’s series finale against the White Sox — Ohtani’s 79th game with the Dodgers — he set a new franchise record after he crushed a leadoff home run that sailed 437 feet over the fence at Guaranteed Rate Field.
With the blast, he extended a streak of games with at least one RBI to 10 consecutive games, setting a new Dodgers record since RBIs became an official stat in 1920, according to MLB stat guru Sarah Langs.
The long ball also marked Ohtani’s third leadoff homer of the season.
Los Angeles Dodgers Shohei Ohtani hitting a solo home run during game against Chicago White Sox.Getty Images
Ohtani could easily be one of the top competitors in the Home Run Derby, and his manager knows it.
However, Roberts also understands the risks are significant — especially after Ohtani was saved by a bat boy after a foul ball rocketed into the Dodgers’ dugout.
“No one can argue that a manager wouldn’t want their player to swing as hard as he can for essentially 45 minutes when [that player] is supposed to be on a break, right?” Roberts said. “But the other side is, obviously, he’s the biggest star in the game, and it makes [the derby] more attractive. So I think whatever he decides, I’ll support it.”
The Home Run Derby will take place at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas on July 15.
