Dodgers Expect Ohtani Back as a Two-Way Player in 2027 After Injury Recovery

Shohei Ohtani is expected to be ready for Spring Training after knee and biceps injuries curtailed his pitching and hitting late in the season. Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said Wednesday that Ohtani won’t need surgery on either injury. That’s a reassuring update, though it doesn’t answer the larger question facing the club: how to keep a player who contributes in two distinct roles available across a full season.

The Dodgers plan to use the four-time MVP as a two-way player again in 2027, as Ohtani had indicated over the weekend. The open question is how much he’ll pitch and whether the club will manage his workload across the full season. Friedman said the team hasn’t settled on any restrictions. That leaves the plan at the level of intent for now; the details will matter once the club decides how Ohtani’s pitching fits alongside his work at the plate.

Late-season injuries interrupted a strong start

Ohtani’s first half showed the value of keeping both roles in play. At the All-Star Break, he was hitting .293/.403/.549 with 22 home runs. On the mound, he had a 1.79 ERA and a 28% strikeout rate through 14 starts, putting him in early Cy Young discussions. Those numbers describe a season in which his contribution wasn’t confined to one side of the game: his bat remained central while his pitching gave the Dodgers another source of value.

That combination also makes the health question harder to reduce to a single return date. A player can be cleared to appear in Spring Training and still need the club to make decisions about how often he pitches, how his innings are distributed, and how the two roles interact over time. The source doesn’t say what those decisions will be, and Friedman’s comments make clear that the Dodgers haven’t set restrictions yet. For now, readiness is the near-term signal; workload remains unresolved.

His production faded as the injuries took hold. A biceps problem sidelined him for a couple of weeks in September, and he struggled at the plate while playing through it. After his last regular-season homer in mid-August, he went nearly two months before launching a three-run shot in Game 4 of the NLCS, the Dodgers’ elimination game. The left knee issue ended his pitching season after July 3.

The late-season decline is a reminder that availability and performance aren’t the same thing. Ohtani returned to the lineup after missing time, but the account here describes him struggling while playing through the biceps problem. The gap between being on the field and producing at his usual level can complicate decisions about whether a player should keep going, particularly when he’s carrying responsibilities on both sides of the game. This is more significant than it looks: the Dodgers’ challenge isn’t simply getting Ohtani back, but managing the demands that come with using him as a two-way player.

Workload is the unanswered part of Ohtani’s return

Friedman’s statement settles one immediate concern: neither injury is expected to require surgery. It doesn’t establish a pitching schedule or explain whether Ohtani’s duties will change over the course of 2027. Those are separate questions, and the club hasn’t supplied an answer to the second one. The distinction matters because a return to two-way play can mean different things in practice depending on how much a player pitches and how the team handles interruptions or setbacks.

Here’s the thing: the Dodgers have announced their broad intention, but the practical plan is still taking shape. Similar decisions around a two-way player typically require balancing the value of his contributions with the risk of asking too much of him, though the source doesn’t describe the specific approach the Dodgers will take. If you’re following the team, the useful details to watch for will be the workload plan and how it changes once Ohtani is back on the mound. The club’s own comments don’t yet offer those details.

Klein’s procedure is not expected to delay spring

Reliever Will Klein underwent an elbow procedure Wednesday to remove bone chips. The Dodgers expect the relatively minor operation to leave his Spring Training availability intact. That forecast is encouraging for his preparation, but it’s still an expectation rather than a report that he has already returned to pitching.

Klein missed the final two months of the season with the elbow injury, after setting career highs with 41 2/3 innings and a 3.67 ERA. He struck out 26% of batters faced. The right-hander had also been a surprise contributor during the Dodgers’ 2025 World Series run. His season therefore included both a substantial workload by his own career standards and a late absence; what the team expects from him next will depend on his recovery and role, neither of which is specified here.

For a reliever, the ability to make the spring program can be a useful first checkpoint, but it doesn’t by itself describe how ready he’ll be for a full season. The Dodgers’ expectation that Klein will be available for Spring Training is the concrete update. The procedure’s long-term effect isn’t detailed, so there’s no basis here to assume more than the team has said.

Backup catcher and designated hitter Dalton Rushing, by contrast, is set for a more significant elbow surgery, which the Dodgers also announced Wednesday. That makes the injury news broader than Ohtani’s return and Klein’s procedure: the club is also facing a more substantial operation for a player who can cover two roles. The source provides no timetable for Rushing, so the extent of the impact on his availability remains unclear.

Coaching staff expected to stay intact

Friedman expects Dave Roberts’ coaching staff to return for 2027, Roberts’ 12th season as manager. A staff expected to remain in place offers continuity around a roster entering the next season with several health questions, including Ohtani’s workload and the recovery timelines for two other players. That continuity doesn’t settle those player decisions, but it means the club isn’t currently signaling a coaching reset.

Bench coach Danny Lehmann has drawn attention as a possible managerial candidate before, though he hasn’t been publicly connected to the Houston or Seattle openings this cycle. The Angels’ vacancy emerged Wednesday after the club declined its option on Kurt Suzuki. Those developments place Lehmann’s past visibility alongside current openings, but the available information doesn’t connect him to either job. A coaching staff expected to stay intact is the Dodgers’ stated position; speculation about other clubs remains separate.

What the Dodgers still need to resolve

For the Dodgers, Ohtani’s return to two-way play is the headline; the practical test will be how they balance his workload after a season in which late injuries cut short both sides of his game. The no-surgery update clears a concern, but it doesn’t tell readers how much he’ll pitch or how the team will respond if his health becomes an issue again. A plan that accounts for both roles will matter more than the label “two-way player” on its own.

And yet, the club has time to define that plan before the season begins. The facts available now are limited but useful: Ohtani is expected for Spring Training, the Dodgers intend to use him in both roles in 2027, and Friedman says no restrictions have been decided. That’s the starting point. The fragment: the workload question.