LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani has been scratched from his Friday start for the Los Angeles Dodgers against the Arizona Diamondbacks and will not play in this year’s All-Star Game in Philadelphia as he addresses continued irritation in his left knee, the team announced.
In a team statement, the Dodgers said Ohtani’s treatments will put him in the “best position for the second half of the season.” Ohtani will have his knee drained, with an injection likely to follow, per a team source. He will serve as L.A.’s designated hitter throughout the weekend.
It is unclear if Ohtani will miss time when the second half begins next Friday. The Dodgers begin the second half with a three-city trip against the New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets.
Shohei Ohtani will not make his scheduled start on the mound this evening against the D-backs due to continued irritation in his left knee. He will serve as the designated hitter the rest of the weekend, but following the series against the D-backs he will have some interventions…
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) July 10, 2026
Ohtani and the Toronto Blue Jays’ Ernie Clement were the first two players appointed to their league’s respective All-Star rosters after winning Phase 1 of MLB’s All-Star fan voting. Ohtani garnered the most overall votes (3,341,25) and was named the NL’s starting designated hitter, his sixth straight All-Star berth.
Friday will represent Ohtani’s first missed start on the mound this year. He has been dealing with knee pain dating back to mid-June. He missed a game as the Dodgers’ designated hitter after his start against the Pittsburgh Pirates on June 10, when he allowed three earned runs and struck out six over 6 2/3 innings. Since then, Ohtani has managed the irritation and pitched through the knee pain, though he was lifted for a pinch hitter in his previous start last Friday against the San Diego Padres after feeling soreness in his right biceps. He returned to the lineup on Sunday after missing one game.
Because of the array of minor injuries — Ohtani also dealt with a recurring blister on his right middle finger in June — manager Dave Roberts was asked last week if Ohtani should skip his last scheduled start before the All-Star break.
“I think it should be on the table,” Roberts said. “Obviously we’re not going to make that decision right now. But anything should be on the table, certainly.”
However, the Dodgers were optimistic throughout the week that Ohtani would be able to take the mound. When asked Tuesday if Ohtani was still in line to start Friday, Roberts said: “As (Ohtani) goes through the next couple days, if he doesn’t feel great, we’ll pivot. And we’re prepared to pivot, but as we sit here, I don’t see that changing.”
Kyle Hurt will now start Friday’s game, which will be a bullpen game for Los Angeles. Yoshinobu Yamamoto will still start Saturday, with Emmet Sheehan starting the final game of the first half on Sunday.
The other Dodgers All-Star representatives — Freddie Freeman, Max Muncy, Andy Pages and Yamamoto — are still slated to attend the festivities in Philadelphia beginning Monday. Freeman, Muncy and Pages will start for the NL. There hasn’t been an official announcement regarding Yamamoto’s potential availability for the game. However, given that he is slated to start Saturday against Arizona, it is unlikely Yamamoto will pitch in the Mid-Summer Classic.
