Shohei Ohtani injury: Where the Dodgers could turn if the superstar misses time in the 2024 World Series

 In the seventh inning of the Los Angeles Dodgers ' eventual 4-2 victory over the New York Yankees in Game 2 of the World Series, Dodgers superstar designated hitter Shohei Ohtani partially dislocated his left shoulder while advancing to second base on a failed steal attempt. Ohtani's status is uncertain going forward, which has put a bit of a damper on the Dodgers' 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven series as the scene shifts to the Bronx.

"Tonight, we'll do some testing tomorrow and then we'll know more in the next few days," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said after Game 2 on Saturday night. "The power was great. The range of motion is good. So we're encouraged."

Roberts also said, when asked if the Dodgers were ready to play the rest of the World Series without Ohtani: "I hope he's there. I hope he's in the lineup."

Those are optimistic tones, but the question remains: What will the Dodgers do if Ohtani is ruled out for part or all of the 2024 World Series? Ohtani’s absence will be shocking, to say the least. During the regular season, Ohtani, who took the season off from his regular pitching duties while recovering from elbow surgery, slashed .310/.390/.646 in a NL-leading 731 plate appearances with 54 homers and 59 steals. Bess produced the first 50-50 season in major league history. Additionally, Ohtani leads the NL with a 190 OPS+ and leads the majors with 411 total bases. As such, he is the overwhelming favorite to win the NL MVP award.

With a solid showing in the NL Championship Series against the Mets, Ohtani hasn't had much of an impact in the first two games of this World Series. Against the Yankees, he went 1-for-7 with a double, walk, caught stealing and a run scored. Yes, the Dodgers were able to win the first two games of the series without much from Ohtani, but frankly, his availability for the remaining games two through five is a concern.

If Ohtani's dislocated shoulder shows up to counter Roberts' upbeat tone and he's in the lineup for Monday's Game 3, this discussion will be over before it even begins. If not, though, the Dodgers face two possibilities: One, Ohtani misses one or more games but can play later in the series, or two, Ohtani is out for the rest of the series, forcing a roster move.

In the first possibility, Roberts will likely take advantage of the designated hitter vacancy because of his sometimes flawed infield defense. The assumption here is that, if Ohtani remains on the roster but misses at least Game 3, Freddie Freeman and his still-sore ankle (though you wouldn't know that from Freeman's production in this series) will move to DH to ease his way into the game's load. Then Max Muncy would move the diamond from third base to first and Roberts would put Enrique at the hot corner with Hernandez. Gavin Lux will be second base. That arrangement could hold at least through Game 6, as the Yankees trot out all the right-handed starters until, perhaps, Carlos Rodon's turn comes up again in a potential Game 7. All those right-handed Yankee starters mean the left-handed Lux ​​likely would have been in the lineup anyway. If Roberts decides to stick with Freeman at first, Muncie could move to DH, and the rest of the changes would be as mentioned above.

If Ohtani’s shoulder injury becomes severe enough that the Dodgers are forced to make a roster move, it seems likely that they will call up another left-handed hitter, as Lux will be benched as a right-hander in the game. The lineup could mean that veteran catcher Kevin Kiermaier, who was on the Dodgers’ NLCS roster, will return. Another possibility could be outfielder James Outman, but Kiermaier seems the most likely route. The Dodgers are famous for their deep reserves of position players throughout their decades of contention and often dominance in the regular season. That supply of reinforcements may not be as strong currently as it once was, but the Dodgers still have reasonable post-Ohtani options that won’t necessarily cripple them. Hemorrhaging the obvious, Ohtani will be sorely missed, but the Dodgers have enough depth and, more importantly, surrounding star power to get the two additional wins they need.

Another reason for the Dodgers’ consolation is the aforementioned 2-0 lead. They accomplished it, as noted, without getting much from Ohtani at the plate, and the stark reality is that the Dodgers need to win two more games before the Yankees win four. Historically, teams lead 2-0 in best-of-seven MLB postseason series that begin at home, as the Dodgers did, winning the series more than 80% of the time. Whatever Ohtani’s status reveals, that math is Los Angeles’s. So much for that.