Dodgers' Ohtani admits he won't be fully healthy in playoffs - ESPN

LOS ANGELES — Dodgers' two-way star Shohei Ohtani called the past few days «very productive» and believes his swing is «in a better place» heading into a National League Division Series showdown against the Atlanta Braves that begins Saturday.

But Ohtani won't be fully healthy then and perhaps at any point this postseason. The left knee and right biceps ailments that compromised him throughout the summer will linger into the fall, Ohtani and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts indicated Friday.

«As of now, it's something I'm just going to have to manage,» Ohtani said through an interpreter.

Knee and biceps injuries finally sent Ohtani to the injured list in early September after a 14-game stretch during which he compiled seven hits and 22 strikeouts. Ohtani returned with five regular-season games left and was inconsistent, putting together an encouraging stretch against the San Diego Padres and an overwhelming one against the San Francisco Giants.

Ohtani took batting practice on the field during workouts Tuesday and Wednesday, a rarity for him, and Dodgers hitting coach Aaron Bates said those sessions were «as good as we've seen it this year as far as the way the ball was coming off and the way he was getting his move off.»

Bates provided some proof of that.

«He did hit a couple balls up off the scoreboard,» he said.

Ohtani also had three plate appearances against Yoshinobu Yamamoto in a prolonged simulated game Wednesday, worked out inside Thursday and came onto the field for three rounds of outdoor batting practice around 6 p.m. PT on Friday. Moments later, he had two at-bats against right-hander Emmet Sheehan, striking out before hitting a line drive to right field.

«Shohei's not 100%, but he's going to be in the lineup,»