LOS ANGELES — A potential disaster struck for the Los Angeles Dodgers in the moments after Shohei Ohtani attempted to steal second base in Game 2 of the World Series, as baseball’s $700 million man clutched his left arm in noticeable discomfort and lay on the infield dirt until manager Dave Roberts and trainer Yosuke Nakajima came to check on him.
Ohtani had drawn a seventh-inning walk against New York Yankees reliever Clay Holmes before breaking for second base, his first attempted steal of this World Series and just his second this postseason. Ohtani appeared to hit his left arm into the dirt on the slide, dragging it behind him as the throw and tag was in time to record the out.
Ohtani is slow to get up after he attempted to steal 2nd. pic.twitter.com/T3Af5GRaiw
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) October 27, 2024
According to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal on Fox’s national broadcast, Ohtani injured his shoulder on the play.
Any injury to Ohtani would strike a massive blow for the Dodgers, who have already seen 12 pitchers hit the injured list this season and rolled out a lineup in Game 2 that included several players already playing through injury. Freddie Freeman has played through a painful sprained right ankle throughout October, producing the dramatic walk-off grand slam to win Game 1 for the Dodgers. Miguel Rojas started Game 2 at shortstop, his first game since the National League Division Series, and has already said he will need hernia surgery immediately after the season.
None, of course, carry more weight than the presumptive NL MVP frontrunner in Ohtani, who has transfixed the sport even in a season when he isn’t pitching and became the first player in baseball history to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in a single season.
(Photo: Steph Chambers / Getty Images)
