Dodgers' Dave Roberts has Shohei Ohtani injury concern after 'visibly' struggling

The Los Angeles Dodgers haven't seen Shohei Ohtani pitch since early July, and after a recent setback, it's looking like he's going to stay off the mound for the remainder of the 2026 regular season, barring a turnaround.

But now it's not only a concern about his ability on the mound. During an 0-4 night on Wednesday against the St. Louis Cardinals, Ohtani was "visibly" ailing, according to Dave Roberts, and now there's some real concern about his status going forward.

Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic shared some further insight from Roberts, with the Dodgers' manager clearly worried about his superstar's physical ability following what was an off night for Ohtani physically.

Dave Roberts has concerns with Shohei Ohtani after looking off physically Wednesday night

"Dave Roberts said he noticed Shohei Ohtani looking off physically tonight," Ardaya reports. "Called it 'the tip of the iceberg' with what he's seen out of Ohtani lately. Said he expects to talk to Ohtani tomorrow about how he's feeling, but Roberts downplayed the idea of an IL stint for Ohtani."

This update from Roberts on Ohtani is, obviously, very concerning. But so too was Ohtani's on-field production Wednesday night.

He didn't look like himself, especially on a few of his swings, as he appeared to labor a bit, not swinging like he normally would.

ESPN shared more from Roberts, who went on to say: "I saw the same thing that everyone saw. You could see the swing wasn't the swing that we're used to seeing. He's not close to optimal."

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So, now it's not only just the return to the mound being up in the air; there are some real question marks about how much he can produce at the plate.

Things have unraveled a bit lately for the Dodgers, and this update from Roberts on Ohtani is especially concerning for the two-way superstar.

Ohtani didn't look like himself during Wednesday night's loss to the Cardinals, and now there is some concern about Ohtani's health. While Roberts pushed back on any injured list talk, considering how much Ohtani looked to be struggling, nothing can be ruled out.

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