Ohtani’s surgery will enable him to pitch in 2025
Elbow procedure will allow Angels’ two-way star to hit next season, surgeon says.
Shohei Ohtani had a successful procedure on his right elbow, the Angels’ twoway star and his agent, Nez Balelo, announced Tuesday.
“Everything went very well,” Ohtani wrote on Instagram. “Thank you very much for everyone’s prayers and kind words.”
The surgery was performed at Kerlan-Jobe Orthopedic Clinic in Los Angeles by Dr. Neal ElAttrache, who had performed Ohtani’s 2018 reconstruction, also known as Tommy John surgery.
“The final decision and type of procedure was made with a heavy emphasis on the big picture,” Balelo said in a statement. “Shohei wanted to make sure the direction taken gave him every opportunity to hit and pitch for many years to come.”
The type of procedure Ohtani had Tuesday was not disclosed, though ElAttrache said he expected Ohtani to resume hitting next season and be able to pitch again in the 2025 season.
“The ultimate plan, after deliberation with Shohei, was to repair the issue at hand and to reinforce the healthy ligament in place while adding viable tissue for the longevity of the elbow,” ElAttrache said in a statement.
“I expect full recovery and he’ll be ready to hit without any restrictions come opening day of 2024 and [hit and pitch] come 2025.”
Ohtani’s season officially ended the evening of Sept. 15, after an MRI revealed the ailing right oblique he had been nursing for almost two weeks showed irritation of the muscle.
Ohtani, 29, had been shut down from pitching after tearing his ulnar collateral ligament pitching in a game on Aug. 23. He continued to serve as the designated hitter until he injured his oblique taking batting practice.
After hearing the MRI results about his oblique and speaking with the Angels, he shifted his focus into getting treatment for his elbow.
Ohtani packed most of his personal belongings in his locker in the Angels clubhouse on Friday but remained around the team through the rest of the homestand against the Detroit Tigers. He will return for the final homestand of the season and continue to be support his teammates.
“It was very unfortunate that I couldn’t finish out the year on the field,” Ohtani wrote, “but I will be rooting on the boys until the end. I will work as hard as I can and do my best to come back on the diamond stronger than ever.
“Go Halos!!” Ohtani had led the Angels’ starting pitching staff until his injury in the first game of a doubleheader against Cincinnati, recording four outs before being pulled. Manager Phil Nevin said he “saw a look” and decided to go to the mound to check on him.
Ohtani remained the designated hitter in the second game that day and continued to DH until Sept. 3 against Oakland, the last game he played.
Amid criticism over the team’s handling of Ohtani after his UCL injury, general manager Perry Minasian told reporters Aug. 26 that the team offered to conduct imaging after he experienced a finger cramp earlier in the month, but the twoway star declined.
Ohtani and his agency, CAA, were not worried the cramp was a symptom of a deeper problem and declined, Minasian explained.
The tear in Ohtani’s ligament was in a different place than the last time he tore his UCL in June 2018. Balelo earlier confirmed the UCL reconstruction Ohtani underwent in 2018 remained intact.
“This is a best-case scenario,” Balelo said regarding the feedback they received from doctors. Balelo said this tear was at the lower end of Ohtani’s ligament.
In 2018, Ohtani initially was shut down as the Angels tried to treat his elbow with platelet-rich plasma and stem cell injections.
He returned one month later as the designated hitter and by September he decided to get surgery, a procedure completed on Oct. 1 by El-Attrache. Ohtani’s 2019 season was delayed as he continued to rehabilitate from the UCL reconstruction and he returned May 7 as the DH. He did not pitch again in a big league game until the 2020 season.
Whether Ohtani will return to hitting and pitching as a player for the Angels, however, is unclear.
Ohtani is in the final months of his contract with the Angels. He is eligible to become a free agent the day after the World Series.
Prior to Ohtani’s second UCL injury, the two-way star was rumored and anticipated to receive recordbreaking offers in excess of $500 million.
Baseball insiders who spoke to The Times in the wake of his injury said even after his injury, while the amount of money he could be offered in free agency might be less, he still will be one of the most heavily sought-after free agents in major league history.
Angels lose to Rays
Osleivis Basabe hit a tiebreaking, two-run double in a four-run eighth inning, and the playoff-bound Tampa Bay Rays beat the Angels 6-2 on Tuesday night.
Logan O’Hoppe and Zach Neto homered for the Angels, who have lost six in a row. Neto’s solo shot in the eighth tied it 2-2.
Patrick Sandoval gave up two runs in five innings before Tampa Bay loaded the bases against Aaron Loup (2-3) in the eighth.
Rookie Nolan Schanuel walked in the third to reach base in 23 straight games to start his career.