Will Shohei Ohtani pitch in All-Star Game? Dave Roberts, Dodgers still weighing options

SACRAMENTO –– Dodgers manager Dave Roberts will be doing double duties at the All-Star Game this year, serving as the National League manager for the event thanks to the Dodgers’ pennant win last season.

But whether or not two-way star Shohei Ohtani does the same –– by both hitting and pitching in the Midsummer Classic –– remains to be decided, with All-Star festivities now two weeks away.

Ohtani is already confirmed as the NL’s starting designated hitter for the game, having earned his sixth All-Star selection as the NL’s top vote-getter in the first round of fan balloting this month. He is likely to be selected to the NL’s pitching staff, as well, thanks to his 8-2 record and career-best 1.58 ERA on the mound this season. Of pitchers with at least 70 innings this year, only Milwaukee Brewers flamethrower Jacob Misiorowski (1.45 ERA) has a better mark.

For Ohtani to pitch in the game, though, a specific concession will likely have to be made.

Since he will be in the NL’s starting batting order, the only logical time for him to pitch would be at the beginning of the game as the NL starter.

Asked about that possibility on Monday, Roberts said he, Ohtani and the Dodgers had yet to come to a decision.

“He’ll obviously DH and then we’ll go from there,” Roberts said. “I don’t know where he is with the pitching thing. We’ll see.”

Ohtani has only pitched once in an All-Star Game before, serving as the American League’s starter during his first MVP season in 2021 with the Angels. In 2022, he only DH’d in the game because of a scheduled start he had for the Angels immediately following the All-Star break. In 2023, he didn’t pitch while nursing a blister. The last two years, he was recovering from Tommy John surgery.

There will be more deserving, and fitting, options to start this year’s All-Star Game on July 14 in Philadelphia. Misiorowski is the league’s leading Cy Young contender, thanks not only to his minuscule ERA but also a 9-3 record and MLB-most 146 strikeouts. Hometown Phillies ace Cristopher Sánchez is also having a standout season, with a 9-3 record, 2.13 ERA and NL-leading 110 innings pitched.

However, if Roberts wants Ohtani to take the mound in the game –– which would line up with his current schedule of pitching every Wednesday, as it falls annually on a Tuesday –– it would likely have to be as the team’s starter.

Otherwise, the four-time MVP would have to find time to warm up while also slotting into the NL’s batting order. An adjustment to the game’s roster rules might also be required, so as not to cost the NL its DH spot in the event Ohtani started the game as a hitter and then later entered as a pitcher in relief.

Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters