Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani scratched from mound start vs. Pirates due to illness, but will still DH

PITTSBURGH — The Los Angeles Dodgers scratched Shohei Ohtani from his scheduled start against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday as a precaution after the superstar complained of not feeling well.

Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani scratched from mound start vs. Pirates due to illness, but will still DH

While Ohtani will still lead off and serve as the designated hitter, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts thought asking Ohtani to make his 12th pitching start of the season would be asking for a little too much. Emmett Sheehan will start instead for Los Angeles.

Roberts said Ohtani was “under the weather” on Tuesday and “didn’t feel good” during a scheduled throwing session. While he remained in the lineup and went 3 for 5, including his 100th home run with the Dodgers, Roberts wanted to give Ohtani some time to regroup before asking him to pitch.

“When you’re sick and potentially dehydrated, the tax of pitching in a game, it wasn’t worth it,” Roberts said.

Roberts added that the hope is Ohtani, who is 1-1 with a 4.18 ERA this season in his return to the mound after undergoing Tommy John surgery, will be able to pitch this weekend when Los Angeles visits Baltimore. Roberts said Ohtani is dealing with a deep cough, though Ohtani and the team believe he can take his normal spot in the lineup without it adversely affecting his health.

Having Ohtani pitch would have been another matter.

“The toll of taking four or five at-bats versus pitching five innings, it’s not even, there’s no comparison,” Roberts said.