Ohtani will play in the third match | Arkansas Democratic Newspaper

NEW YORK — Shohei Ohtani will start for the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 3 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium on Monday night despite partially dislocating his left shoulder.

Ohtani was injured while sliding into second base when he was caught stealing, ending the seventh inning of Saturday’s 4-2 victory over the New York Yankees in Game 2 in Los Angeles.

“I just don’t see him not playing in Game 3,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said before Sunday’s practice at Yankee Stadium. If he feels good enough to leave, I don’t see any reason why he wouldn’t play there.

Ohtani did not travel with the team to New York to undergo imaging. He was on a separate flight.

“When it comes to test results, doctors are all over the place. I don’t have them,” Roberts said. “It’s more of a question of the coaching staff. Shohei feels good this morning, range of motion, strength.”

Ohtani was scheduled to arrive at the field in time for practice, which began at 5 p.m. Central European Time. Roberts said that since the injury, Ohtani has been taking dry swings and was going to hit the tee and take batting practice in the inside cage.

“That will be telling,” the manager said. “He still needs to get training and swing the bat, but he feels better today than he did yesterday and we assume he will feel better tomorrow than he did today.”

Roberts said the injury causes pain, but “it’s a matter of everyone’s tolerance.”

“I don’t see him being at risk,” he added. “It’s the left arm, or the back arm. So I don’t see how it affects his hitting if he’s able to play.”

Looking to win their eighth title and second in five years, the Dodgers are 2-0 in the best-of-seven series.

Walker Buehler starts his third game for Los Angeles against Clarke Schmidt.

Ohtani gets the lead and Roberts counts on his presence.

“If he can play and wants to play, he will play,” the manager said. “Schmidt will know that Shohei is in the box, and that means everything.”

Ohtani grabbed his left forearm after being caught by shortstop Anthony Volpe in the final seventh on a slider in front. He lay near the bag for several minutes before being attended to by athletic trainers and leaving the field.

The probable NL MVP was 0-for-3 with a walk in the second game. He went 1-for-8 in the first two games of the fall classic, and in his first postseason in the major leagues, he was hitting .260 with three home runs and 10 RBI.

A two-time AL MVP with the Los Angeles Angels, Ohtani joined the Dodgers last December in a record-breaking 10-year deal worth $700 million.

Ohtani, 30, hit .310 with 54 home runs, 130 RBI and 59 stolen bases, becoming the first player with at least 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a season. The two-way star did not pitch this season while recovering from elbow surgery on September 19, 2023, and was limited to designated hitter.

“I think any time you have arguably the best baseball player in the world, it will help some players and allow them to play with less pressure and more freedom,” Buehler said. “He’s been amazing for the club and our team, so it’s been a cool year seeing him 50-50 on the pitch, day-to-day and the kind of person he is.”

Ohtani was one of the few players on the Dodgers’ roster who made it through the season without major injuries. Nearly every member of the starting rotation was on the injured list, and the team led the league in injured list spots with 36 players and injured list days with 2,342 players.

Among position players, Mookie Betts was sidelined for almost two months with a broken left hand, and Max Muncy was sidelined for almost half the season with a torn oblique muscle in his right hand. Freddie Freeman, who hit the game-winning Grand Slam in the opening game on Friday night, is playing the postseason with a sprained right ankle.