With Blake Snell set to make his return for the Dodgers, Shohei Ohtani took another positive step towards his pitching return. As the 2026 MLB regular season rapidly comes to an end, with teams fighting for playoff positioning and Pete Crow-Armstrong challenging to become the new NL MVP, one of the biggest questions surrounding the Los Angeles Dodgers is when Shohei Ohtani will take the mound next. Article Continues Below“Shohei Ohtani pitching update: He played catch for the third time in the last week today, and then went to the bullpen for a couple dry throws off the mound (no ball, just mimicking mechanics),” Harris wrote. “I suppose that's another positive step. If Ohtani is healthy enough to take the mound, he will absolutely be part of that rotation, as maintaining a career-best 1.79 ERA over 85.2 innings is incredibly impressive, regardless of how many home runs go along with it.