Shohei Ohtani’s injuries and postseason slump leave Dodgers with offseason questions

Every October, baseball turns one player into the biggest headline. This year that player is Shohei Ohtani again. Fans refresh injury reports constantly, argue online, and hold their breath on every single swing he takes.

The easy story is about a sore left knee. It is simple, visible, and easy to explain. But the best baseball stories rarely stay simple, and this one has more layers than most fans realize.

A superstar who struggled through October

Shohei Ohtani entered the middle of October in one of the most noticeable slumps of his career. Through his first 6 playoff games, he had only 3 hits in 20 at-bats, with no extra-base hits and 7 strikeouts.

His postseason ultimately ended with better numbers than that early snapshot. Ohtani finished the 2026 playoffs batting .192 with 5 hits in 26 at-bats, 1 home run, 3 RBIs and 10 strikeouts across 8 games.

That lone home run came in NLCS Game 4 against Milwaukee, when Ohtani hit a 3-run shot that briefly gave Los Angeles a 4-0 lead. The Brewers came back to win 6-4, completing a 4-game sweep and ending the Dodgers' season.

Ohtani left the Dodgers' June 11 game against Pittsburgh because of inflammation in his left knee. It is the same knee on which he underwent surgery in September 2019 to repair a bipartite patella, a congenital condition involving the kneecap.

The knee continued to bother him during the 2026 season, particularly while pitching. During the All-Star break, Ohtani received an Orthovisc injection designed to lubricate the joint, and the Dodgers repeatedly adjusted his throwing schedule as the discomfort persisted.

Ohtani later said he had not yet identified the root cause of all his physical issues and expected to investigate them more fully during the offseason. After Los Angeles was eliminated, he said it was still unclear whether any offseason procedure would be necessary.

How the knee problem affected his pitching

Ohtani also dealt with discomfort in his right biceps. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the problem first appeared around Ohtani's July 3 start against San Diego and that compensating for his painful knee had placed unintended stress on his upper body.

Ohtani later threw about 30 pitches in a bullpen session, but discomfort followed. Roberts said the Dodgers would not move forward until both Ohtani and the club felt 100% confident, noting that the bullpen session had produced "a little bit of regression."

Ohtani's pitching season ultimately ended with an 8-2 record, a 1.79 ERA and 95 strikeouts across 85 2/3 innings. Those numbers showed how effective he had been before the injuries ended his work on the mound.

A strong season that ended with warning signs

Ohtani finished the regular season with a .275 batting average, a .377 on-base percentage, 30 home runs and 81 RBIs. Those are strong numbers, but his production declined noticeably after the All-Star break.

In 47 second-half games, Ohtani hit .245 with 8 home runs and a .772 OPS. His knee and right-arm problems became an increasing part of the story as the season progressed, eventually ending his pitching season and sending him to the injured list in September.

Before the NLDS, Ohtani said he was still managing the physical issues and expected to investigate their underlying cause during the offseason. He nevertheless returned as the Dodgers' designated hitter for the postseason.

Little-known fact: Ohtani joined Babe Ruth as the only AL/NL player to record at least 10 pitching wins and 10 home runs in the same season, accomplishing the feat in 2022.

Mechanics and health became bigger questions

Ohtani's late-season and postseason slump raised questions about what had gone wrong, but he did not publicly identify a lack of confidence as the primary cause. Instead, he repeatedly discussed his physical condition and the difficulty of keeping his swing mechanics synchronized throughout a long season.

Before NLCS Game 3, Ohtani said there is usually only a short stretch during a season when his mechanics feel completely in sync. He also refused to use his injuries as an excuse for his poor results and accepted responsibility for his performance.

Ohtani ultimately finished the 2026 postseason batting .192 with 5 hits in 26 at-bats, 1 home run, 3 RBIs and 10 strikeouts. His Game 4 homer provided one final flash of his usual power, but it was not enough to prevent Milwaukee from completing the sweep.

What happened after Ohtani dropped to sixth

The Dodgers moved Ohtani to the No. 6 spot for NLCS Game 3, his lowest starting position in a batting order since 2020 and his lowest as a Dodger. He responded by going 1-for-2 with a walk, but Los Angeles lost 6-2 and fell behind 3-0 in the series.

For Game 4, Ohtani returned to the leadoff spot. He hit a 3-run home run in the second inning, giving the Dodgers an early 4-0 advantage and snapping a home-run drought that had lasted nearly 2 months.

The lineup adjustment ultimately could not change the series. Milwaukee rallied to win Game 4, 6-4, completing the sweep and ending Los Angeles' attempt to win a third consecutive World Series.

The Brewers remembered what Ohtani did last October

In the 2025 NLCS against Milwaukee, Ohtani went 5-for-14 with 3 home runs and won series MVP honors. All 3 homers came in an extraordinary Game 4 in which he also struck out 10 batters over 6-plus scoreless innings.

Brewers manager Pat Murphy called it "maybe the best individual performance ever in a postseason game." A year later, Milwaukee faced Ohtani again with the memory of that historic performance still fresh.

This time, the outcome was reversed. Ohtani homered in Game 4 of the 2026 NLCS, but Milwaukee rallied from a 4-0 deficit to win 6-4 and complete a 4-game sweep of the Dodgers.

What comes next for Ohtani and the Dodgers

The Dodgers' postseason is over. Milwaukee won Games 3 and 4 at Dodger Stadium to complete a 4-0 NLCS sweep and advance to the World Series for the first time since 1982.

Ohtani provided one final highlight by hitting a 3-run homer in Game 4, but the Brewers erased Los Angeles' early 4-0 lead and won 6-4. Ohtani finished the postseason with a .192 batting average after playing through lingering left-knee and right-biceps problems.

The focus now moves to the offseason. Ohtani has said it remains unclear whether his injuries will require surgery, but he expects to return to pitching in 2027. How the Dodgers manage his health and two-way workload will be one of their biggest questions entering next season.

Ohtani dealt with lingering left-knee and right-biceps problems during the second half of the 2026 season.

He finished the postseason batting .192 with 5 hits, 1 home run, 3 RBIs and 10 strikeouts in 8 games.

Ohtani discussed both his swing mechanics and his physical condition but did not identify a loss of confidence as the main cause of his slump.

His only postseason extra-base hit came on a 3-run homer in NLCS Game 4.

Milwaukee swept the Dodgers 4-0, shifting the focus to Ohtani's offseason recovery and planned return to pitching in 2027.