Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani Scratched From Scheduled Pitching Start on Wednesday

This is a surprise.Noah Camras|

Jun 24, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Shohei Ohtani (17) looks on before delivering a pitch against the Minnesota Twins in the first inning at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

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Los Angeles Dodgers two-way star Shohei Ohtani won't be pitching in Wednesday's series finale against the Athletics, the team announced on Tuesday.

While Ohtani was initially scheduled to start on Wednesday, the team will now use a bullpen game instead, per Katie Woo of The Athletic.

Ohtani's next pitching start has been pushed back to Friday against the San Diego Padres. That is the second game of a four-game set with the Padres at UNIQLO Field at Dodger Stadium.

Shohei Ohtani will not start tomorrow against the A’s and will pitch Friday against the Padres.
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) June 30, 2026

Why Isn't Shohei Ohtani Starting on Wednesday vs Athletics?

It's currently unclear why Ohtani isn't making his start on Wednesday, and is instead pitching Friday.

Manager Dave Roberts recently said Ohtani still isn't 100 percent in his recovery from a knee injury. However, that hasn't stopped him from pitching the last couple of weeks.

Ohtani has been on a once-a-week pitching schedule, starting every Wednesday for LA. It remains to be seen how this change shakes up his schedule moving forward.

It's possible that the Dodgers wanted Ohtani to get some extra rest because of his knee. It's also possible the team planned on pushing him back at this point in the year with them playing 13 games in 13 days.

Ohtani has only pitched on less than six days' rest once this season. In order to keep that going, he would have had to be pushed back at some point in this stretch.

Shohei Ohtani Struggling After Dominant Start to Season

Ohtani's last three starts have been significantly less sharp than his first 10 this season.

Through 10 starts in 2026, Ohtani had allowed just five earned runs and sported a 0.74 ERA.

In his last three starts, he's allowed nine earned runs, and has seen his ERA rise to 1.58.

Ohtani has not only been pitching with a blister on his hand, but he's also thrown to Dalton Rushing in his last three starts since Will Smith went on the injured list.

Shohei Ohtani with Will Smith as his catcher this year: 10 G, 5 ER, 0.74 ERA

Shohei Ohtani with Dalton Rushing as his catcher this year: 3 G, 9 ER, 4.34 ERA pic.twitter.com/BltB2rBqxF
— Noah Camras (@noahcamras) June 25, 2026

Ohtani and Rushing weren't on the same page in his start last week, leading to some viral disagreements and more publicity than the team would have wanted.

For what it's worth, Rushing took accountability for his actions after the fact, and vowed to be better moving forward.

“Look, he’s the greatest player to play this game,” Rushing said to the California Post. “And he has every right to, one, call whatever he would like, and two, just attack the way that he wants to on the mound. Because no one on this earth can tell him that he doesn’t know what he’s doing out there.

“So we’re gonna move forward from it. I’ve talked to him a lot. Never in a million years could you ever have a bad thing to say about a guy like that. Never in a million years could you ever feel like a player like that is in the wrong. So it’s kind of up to me, as a young guy, to wear the situation, wear it on my chest, get over it, move past it, and make sure that we allow a guy like that to do what he wants to do.”

Roberts said earlier this week he hadn't yet decided if Rushing would catch Ohtani's next start. That decision has now been pushed back a couple days.

Published 2 hours ago | Modified 2 hours ago

NOAH CAMRAS

Noah Camras graduated from the University of Southern California in 2022 with a B.A. in Journalism and a minor in sports media studies. He was born and raised in Los Angeles and has extensively covered Southern California sports in his career. Noah is the publisher of Dodgers on SI after contributing as a writer and editor over the last three years.

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GOP Rep. Tom Kean Jr. explains his 'mysterious' 4-month absence from Congress

WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 30: U.S. Rep. Thomas Kean Jr. (R-NJ) departs the U.S. Capitol on June 30, 2026 in Washington, DC. Rep. Kean delivered a speech on the House floor to explain his four month absence from Congress, which he said was due to diagnosed depression. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) — U.S. Rep. Thomas Kean Jr. (R-NJ) departs the U.S. Capitol on June 30, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

OAN Staff Lillian Mann
6:30 PM – Tuesday, June 30, 2026

In an emotional speech on the House floor, New Jersey GOP Representative Tom Kean Jr. revealed the reason behind his four-month long medical leave from Congress, telling his fellow lawmakers that he was in the hospital for depression.

Kean (R-N.J.) disclosed on Tuesday that he was recently diagnosed with depression following a hospitalization for undisclosed health concerns. He added that recovering from the mental illness has taken longer than expected.

“I am a private person by nature … talking about myself has never come naturally. But I believe that I owe an explanation to the people of New Jersey’s 7th District, to my colleagues in this chamber and to the American people for my absence,” he began from the podium Tuesday morning.

“I was given the diagnosis of depression. It is physical, it is emotional and, until you’ve experienced it yourself, it is difficult to fully understand how powerful this illness can be.”

The 57-year-old has missed more than 140 votes during his recovery, amounting to a 100% absence rate, according to the website GovTrack.

“I began to understand not only my diagnosis, but how long depression had been affecting my life,” he continued. “When people hear the word depression, many people think it simply means feeling sad. But depression is so much more than that.”

“When I first informed the public that I was dealing with a medical issue, I was still trying to understand what was happening myself,” he said of the secrecy of his absence.

Despite feeling hesitant when his doctors recommended he stayed at the hospital, he shared that he was ultimately grateful for the decision.

“When I said I hope to return in a matter of weeks, I believed it. Those were the best estimates that the doctor could provide. But as the over 48 million of my fellow Americans being treated for this illness have come to discover, there is no timeline for healing. There is no timeline for recovery. Only the work of getting better one day at a time,” he said.

“Today I am grateful that I listened to my doctors … I am grateful that I accepted help. Because today I stand before you healthier, stronger and excited to return to the work that I love.”

Although Kean’s condition was not made public until Tuesday, the details were apparently known by Capitol Hill colleagues –including House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) — who said earlier this month, “I do know what his health issue is, but he’s asked me not to disclose that, and I’m going to honor that.”

Johnson also emphasized at the time that Kean’s absence is “not a scandalous thing at all,” telling reporters that “people deal with health issues. Maybe that’s a news flash for you, but even members of Congress get sick as well.”

During his absence, Kean secured the Republican nomination for a third term representing New Jersey’s 7th Congressional District after running unopposed in the primary. He will face Rebecca Bennett (D-N.J.) in November.

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