MILWAUKEE — Shohei Ohtani is set to make his fifth and final pitching appearance of the first half on Saturday in San Francisco, manager Dave Roberts said. First pitch against the Giants is set for 1:05 p.m. PT.
In four starts on the mound this season, Ohtani has combined to hold opponents to one run on four hits across six innings (1.50 ERA). He’s struck out six against one walk. The Dodgers’ two-way star also leads the National League with 31 homers — the most in franchise history before the All-Star break — and entered Wednesday with a .998 OPS, the third-best mark in the Majors behind Aaron Judge and Cal Raleigh.
There is a chance that Ohtani could get into the third inning after pitching two innings in each of his prior two outings, but the Dodgers have chosen to keep the details of Ohtani’s unique progression on the mound open-ended. Ohtani’s 31 pitches last Saturday marked a season high.
As Ohtani continues to build up his workload at the big league level, he is essentially being used as a multi-inning opener. The team has purposefully taken things slowly in Ohtani’s rehab from his second major surgery on his right elbow.
Righty Emmet Sheehan will follow Ohtani as the bulk pitcher on Saturday. Sheehan has held opponents to two runs across nine innings (2.00 ERA) in two starts after completing his rehab from Tommy John surgery this season. The 25-year-old has not pitched in relief since his rookie year in 2023.
