Los Angeles Dodgers slugger Shohei Ohtani is gearing up for the 2025 season. Ohtani took his first batting practice session of the spring Sunday, per the Los Angeles Times. The slugger batted against 32 pitches.
Ohtani is coming off a powerful 2024 season, which was his first with the Dodgers. He batted at a .310 average, with 54 home runs. He also drove in 130 runs on 197 total hits.
The slugger also became the first Major League Baseball player ever to have a 50-50 campaign. Ohtani stole more than 50 bases to go with his 54 homers. It was a stellar season, that ended with his selection as National League MVP.
Ohtani is taking it easy so far in spring games. That’s understandable, as Los Angeles will expect a lot of at-bats from the slugger in the coming months. Ohtani will also likely see action on the mound too as a pitcher.
The Dodgers star is also recovering from offseason shoulder surgery.
Will the Dodgers be able to repeat as World Series Champions?
The Dodgers need Ohtani this season in order to make it back to the World Series. Ohtani is a powerful offensive weapon who works in tandem with Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts and others in the lineup.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts recently announced he’s planning on using Ohtani as the leadoff hitter. Los Angeles will then bring in Betts, Freeman and Teoscar Hernandez to fill the 2-4 positions in the batting order.
The Dodgers have a strong rotation too to complement the batting talent. While Ohtani may find some work on the mound, he won’t be needed on a regular basis. Los Angeles already has Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tony Gonsolin as well as newcomers Roki Sasaki and Blake Snell. Tanner Scott is expected to be the closer.
Despite all of the talent on this roster, it feels as if Ohtani’s performance will make the strongest impact. The slugger’s recovery from surgery is pivotal to the team’s success.
Ohtani is changing his pitching technique due to the injury.
“Traditionally, I’ve been throwing from the stretch a lot,” Ohtani said through an interpreter, per The Orange County Register. “But as part of being a baseball player, I do want to explore different options, different avenues, to see if I could grow as a player.”
Dodgers management doesn’t want Ohtani to push too hard.
“There’s some complicating factors,” Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes said. “Looking at the schedule, we have a general sense of what we’d like to do right now. But obviously once we get there, (we will) continue to talk to Sho and build him up so that … he feels as prepared as possible when he goes into a regular game.”
Los Angeles’ spring games continue on Sunday. The Dodgers are playing the San Diego Padres.
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