Shohei Ohtani sustains shoulder injury in Game 2 of World Series

Shohei Ohtani sustained a shoulder injury in Game 2 of the World Series, leaving a previously jubilant Dodger Stadium stunned as he left the field with an athletic trainer.

Ohtani was thrown out attempting to steal second base to end the bottom of the seventh inning and stayed on the ground in pain. He was holding his left arm, which took the brunt of his weight as he slid into second. Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal later reported that it was a shoulder injury.

The Fox Sports mics picked up Ohtani’s conversation after the injury, with one Japanese-speaking account reporting that the slugger said his left shoulder popped out of its socket.

Ohtani did not officially leave the game because the inning was over, and he’s the designated hitter, so the Dodgers didn’t need to replace him until his next at-bat, which never happened. However, MLB.com’s Juan Toribio reports that Ohtani left Dodger Stadium almost immediately after the game ended.

After the game, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts provided a positive update, telling reporters Ohtani sustained a “little” subluxation and had good results with initial tests.

The Dodgers were up 4-1 at the time of the injury and held on to win 4-2 and take a 2-0 lead in the series, but any significant Ohtani injury would be awful for them, as well as baseball in general. The 2024 World Series was set up as Ohtani’s first appearance on baseball’s biggest stage, with the ratings to match.

Instead, the Dodgers and their fans will be holding their breath as the series heads to New York, with Game 3 on Monday.

Stealing bases had been the story of Ohtani’s season, as he went from a fast but inefficient baserunner to one of the best in baseball in his first season with the Dodgers. He made MLB history with the first 50-50 season, finishing the year with 59 steals on 63 attempts, but the postseason was another story for that skill.

The play on which he was injured was only his second attempt of the playoffs, with no successes.