Shohei Ohtani throws Dodgers bullpen session in big sign for knee injury recovery

PHILADELPHIA –– It remains unclear exactly when Shohei Ohtani will get back in the Dodgers pitching rotation.But on Wednesday, at least, the two-way star took an encouraging step by getting back off the mound in a pregame bullpen session.Before the Dodgers’ series-finale against the Phillies –– a game that Ohtani was originally expected to start before a lingering left knee injury prompted the team to give him a break from pitching –– Ohtani played long toss in the outfield at Citizens Bank Park, then proceeded to the bullpen for a 31-pitch session in which he used his full pitch mix.It was the first time Ohtani had thrown off a mound in exactly two weeks, and his first bullpen session since receiving a lubricant injection in his knee during the All-Star break.“It’s a big sign,” manager Dave Roberts said.“It went great,” pitching coach Mark Prior added.Prior and assistant pitching coach Connor McGuiness (who observed Ohtani’s bullpen alongside interpreter Will Ireton) both described Wednesday as a normal bullpen session, similar to what Ohtani would do between starts while he was making regular turns through the rotation.Prior also said Wednesday’s session had been pre-planned, and that the team will see how Ohtani feels in the coming days before deciding what will be next for him pitching-wise.“Once he started playing catch, [the plan] was to see how he felt over the three or four day,” Prior said.“If everything felt good, he was going to throw a bullpen today.”Ohtani last made a pitching start on July 3, before having his final scheduled outing of the first half scratched because of lingering discomfort in his knee.He has been battling inflammation and irritation in his knee –– the same one he had surgery on in 2019 to address a congenital condition –– since mid-June, when his knee first flared up on him the day after a pitching start in Pittsburgh.The right-hander said he believed the problem arose because of flaws in ...