Shohei Ohtani looked sharp in his spring training debut on the mound, delivering 4 1/3 scoreless innings for the Los Angeles Dodgers in a 5–1 win over the San Francisco Giants at Camelback Ranch. The right-hander allowed one hit, issued two walks, and hit one batter while striking out four, throwing 61 pitches with 34 strikes. He reached a peak velocity of 99.9 mph and received a standing ovation as he exited, showing little rust despite it being his first start since Game 7 of the World Series.
Ohtani’s command wavered at times, but his overall stuff was electric, especially considering the circumstances. In this outing, he served strictly as a pitcher rather than fulfilling his usual two-way role, with temperatures soaring into triple digits and the game ending after eight innings due to the heat. During the regular season, Ohtani is expected to return to his customary workload as both a hitter and a pitcher.
The outing marked Ohtani’s first appearance on a Cactus League mound since 2023. He had appeared in just one spring game before leaving Dodgers camp to join Samurai Japan for the World Baseball Classic, where he was used exclusively as a hitter. In the tournament, he went 6-for-13 with three home runs and seven RBIs across four games before Japan was eliminated in the quarterfinals by eventual champion Venezuela.
Because Ohtani did not pitch during the Classic, there were questions about how quickly he could build arm strength. Those concerns were eased by bullpen sessions and a four-inning simulated game he completed while away, allowing him to stretch out comfortably in his spring debut. Being able to handle something close to a full starter’s workload early could set the stage for one of his strongest pitching seasons.
Ohtani has qualified for the ERA title only once, in 2022, when he logged career highs with 166 innings and 28 starts while going 15–9 with a 2.33 ERA for the Los Angeles Angels. After suffering an elbow injury late in 2023 that sidelined him from pitching throughout 2024, he returned to the mound midway through 2025. He finished that season with a 2.87 ERA over 14 regular-season starts and went 2–1 with a 4.43 ERA in the postseason, helping the Dodgers capture their second consecutive World Series title.
