Shohei Ohtani on track to be activated Wednesday and is 'significantly better,' Dodgers manager Dave Roberts says

Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts confirmed Tuesday that star two-way player Shohei Ohtani is on track to be activated from the injured list on Wednesday, when he first becomes eligible. The manager added that Ohtani is "significantly better" than when he was added to the IL and even quantified it, saying, "if he [Ohtani] was a 5 before, he's probably an 8 or 9 now."

Ohtani was added to the 15-day IL on Sept. 11, backdated to Sept. 8. The past two months of his season have been plagued by nagging knee and biceps injuries, and the Dodgers decided it was better to give him two weeks of rest in mid-September so he could recover by the time the playoffs start.

If Ohtani is indeed activated Wednesday, he will have five regular-season games to ensure he's still feeling good and get back into his rhythm before L.A. begins postseason play.

Ohtani is expected to be eased back into play as the Dodgers monitor how taking live reps and swings in games impacts him. He will focus on hitting throughout the Dodgers' postseason run and is not expected to take the mound again this year.

The Dodgers' slugger has played in 130 games this season and made 14 starts on the mound. Ohtani is slashing .277/.380/.522 with 30 home runs and 80 RBI.

Despite limited pitching innings this season, he is still projected to be an MVP finalist. Chicago 's Pete Crow-Armstrong is having a better season at the plate, but Ohtani's 8-2 record on the mound with a 1.79 ERA and 95 strikeouts in 85 2/3 innings of work keep him firmly in the award race.

The Dodgers and Ohtani, if he is activated Wednesday, will take on the San Diego Padres . While L.A. has already clinched the NL West title, San Diego is in the thick of the NL wild-card race and has yet to punch its ticket to the postseason.