NEWYou can now listen to Pakinomist articles!
The face of baseball won’t be at Tuesday’s All-Star Game.
Shohei Ohtani was scratched from his start on Friday when the Los Angeles Dodgers said he also will miss the Midsummer Classic with what the team called left knee irritation.
Ohtani has become an All-Star Game fixture for obvious reasons. He has won the honor in each of the past five seasons and made his first start in 2021.
CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON Pakinomist
Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Shohei Ohtani #17 warms up before the MLB game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on June 3, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo: Christian Petersen/Getty Images) (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
The two-way phenom is on pace to win his fifth MVP award in his last six seasons as he hits .290 with a .939 OPS and pitches to a minuscule 1.79 ERA, the second-lowest in the sport among pitchers with 80-plus innings. His OPS is also the seventh best mark in the league.
The Dodgers said Ohtani will be the team’s designated hitter until the break, but he will “have some interventions on the knee to put him in the best position for the second half of the season.”
Ohtani dealt with knee issues earlier this season.
It’s certainly a big hit to the game as the other face of the sport, Aaron Judge, will miss the game due to a broken rib that has kept him out since late May.
Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers gets ready in the cover circle against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on June 1, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) (Norm Hall/Getty Images)
DODGERS WILL AGAIN VISIT WHITE HOUSE TO CELEBRATE WORLD SERIES CHAMPIONSHIP, OFFICIALS SAY
Ohtani hit a combined 99 home runs in 2024 and 2025 and led the National League with a 1.025 OPS in that span. Ohtani didn’t pitch in 2024 after elbow surgery, but returned to the bump last year and owned a 2.87 ERA and 11.9 K/9, numbers he also put up in 2022 that led the American League.
The “Japanese Babe Ruth” is the only player in MLB history to have more than 300 plate appearances and 40-plus innings in six separate seasons (Ruth did it only twice and never stole 50 bases), and he has more than excelled at both.
Shohei Ohtani pitches for the Los Angeles Dodgers against the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California on May 13, 2026. (Gary A. Vasquez/Imagn Images)
CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE Pakinomist APP
Ohtani isn’t hitting like he has in the past, but the best pitching performance of his career will certainly make up for it. He has “only” 20 homers and 56 RBI this season.
