LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Dodgers activated Shohei Ohtani from the injured list Wednesday and put him in the starting lineup against the San Diego Padres. Ohtani had been on the injured list since Sept. 8 with lingering pain in his right biceps and left knee.
He is batting second as the designated hitter. Ohtani will only hit for the rest of this season.
Mookie Betts is leading off. He is hitting .373/.468/.746 in September.
Ohtani is in the third season of the 10-year, $700 million contract he signed with Los Angeles in December 2023.
Robbie Ray Starts For San Diego Padres Against Shohei Ohtani
San Diego is starting left-hander Robbie Ray. The Padres acquired Ray from the San Francisco Giants on Aug. 3 in a deadline trade for two prospects.
Ray won the 2021 AL Cy Young Award with the Toronto Blue Jays. At the time of the trade, he was 10-6 with a 3.08 ERA and 107 strikeouts for San Francisco.
He is making $25 million this season, and the Giants and Padres are expected to split the remainder of that salary. Ray can become a free agent after the season.
Josue De Paula Optioned To Triple-A Oklahoma City
The Dodgers also optioned outfielder Josue De Paula to Triple-A Oklahoma City. De Paula had 10 hits and 11 walks in 42 plate appearances after temporarily replacing Ohtani at designated hitter.
According to ESPN, the Dodgers are strongly considering De Paula as a left-handed bat off the bench for the postseason. The 21-year-old was born in Brooklyn and signed with the Dodgers as an international free agent out of the Dominican Republic on Jan. 15, 2022.
On Tuesday, Los Angeles activated right-hander Roki Sasaki and center fielder Andy Pages from the injured list.
