Dodgers place Shohei Ohtani on IL, call up Josue De Paula

LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers scored 14 runs Wednesday night. Yoshinobu Yamamoto struck out 10 over seven dominant innings. Mookie Betts, Max Muncy, Kiké Hernández and Kyle Tucker all went deep. The Dodgers won its seventh consecutive game and completed a sweep of the Cincinnati Reds.

It was, by every conventional measure, a spectacular night at Uniqlo Field at Dodger Stadium.

And yet, somehow, the biggest news surrounding the Dodgers had nothing to do with the 14 runs they put on the scoreboard.

The Dodgers are placing Shohei Ohtani on the injured list.

That decision, more than anything that happened during the Dodgers' 14-1 demolition of the Reds, will define the next two weeks of this season.

Ohtani has missed six of the Dodgers' last seven games. The only game he appeared in during that stretch came Monday, when he went 0-for-3. He felt something during a swing that night, and the discomfort in his arm persisted.

The problem wasn't properly communicated until Tuesday, when Ohtani was in the batting cage and informed the training staff and Dave Roberts.

Now, with the postseason just around the corner, the Dodgers have decided the best course of action is to shut down their biggest star.

As a two-way player, Ohtani must serve a 15-day stint on the injured list. The earliest he can return is Sept. 23, just five regular-season games before the playoffs begin.

The timing is uncomfortable. The decision is understandable.

But that doesn't mean it's easy to accept.

Roberts said Ohtani was disappointed about going on the IL, but understood why the Dodgers were making the move.

“Disappointed in the sense that he wants to play but he realizes it’s the best thing for him so he can be the player we all want him to be in October.”

That's the calculation the Dodgers are making.

They aren't worried about whether Ohtani can gut out a few regular-season at-bats. They're worried about having him ready when the games actually matter.

Roberts was emphatic that, if this were October already, Ohtani would be playing.

“If it were a postseason game tomorrow, he’d be in the lineup.”

That should tell you everything about how the Dodgers view the situation.

Still, there's a legitimate question to ask: Was this handled the right way?

I'm not convinced it was.

Ohtani felt something Monday. The Dodgers didn't learn the full extent of the issue until Tuesday. By Wednesday, he was out of the lineup again, and an IL stint was on the table.

For a player this important, with the postseason less than three weeks away, communication matters. Timing matters. And every day matters.

The Dodgers can say all the right things about October, and they are probably right that protecting Ohtani now gives him the best chance to be himself then.

But the road to that point has been messier than it should have been.

Fortunately for the Dodgers, there was plenty of baseball to play Wednesday night.

And the Dodgers responded the way they've been responding for much of this recent winning streak: by overwhelming the opposition.

Yamamoto was magnificent.

Seven innings. Three hits. One run. Ten strikeouts. Ninety pitches.

The only real blemish came when Elly De La Cruz took him deep to center, continuing a remarkable two-night stretch in which De La Cruz homered against both Tarik Skubal and Yamamoto.

Other than that, Yamamoto controlled the game from start to finish.

Then the Dodgers' offense took over.

Betts started the scoring with a two-run homer in the third inning, his 19th of the season. It was also his 171st home run as a Dodger, tying Pedro Guerrero for 11th in franchise history.

And then came the fourth inning. Six runs.

The Dodgers scored four times before the inning was even over with the damage continuing to pile up. Kiké Hernández delivered a two-run double. Kyle Tucker doubled, and Alex Freeland followed with a double of his own to bring Tucker home. A wild pitch added another run.

It was the kind of inning that turns a competitive game into a laugher in a matter of minutes.

Max Muncy eventually made it 11-1 with his 27th home run of the season.

The Dodgers hadn't scored in double digits since Aug. 17 against Colorado. By the end of the night, they had 14.

They also had a sweep. They are now 89-57, winners of seven straight.

And Teoscar Hernández has driven in a run in seven consecutive games.

So, yes, this was an excellent night for the Dodgers. But the clubhouse won't leave Los Angeles thinking primarily about the scoreboard. Because while Yamamoto was dominating and the offense was exploding, the Dodgers were also preparing for life without Ohtani.

Enter Josue De Paula.

At 21 years old, De Paula is being summoned directly from Double-A, a move that says as much about the organization's belief in him as it does about its immediate need for a designated hitter.

De Paula has earned this opportunity.

He has posted a .948 OPS with 27 home runs in Double-A this season, making major strides at the plate and continuing to establish himself as one of the most talented young players in the organization.

Now he's going to make his major-league debut Friday in Miami. Roberts explained why the Dodgers felt comfortable bringing him directly from Double-A.

“You could argue the talent in Double-A is similar to Triple-A as far as pure arms and arm talent. We’ve seen him in camp for two or three years. He doesn’t run from velocity, this is a good opportunity for him.”

That's a pretty strong endorsement.

The Dodgers aren't calling De Paula up simply because they need a body to fill Ohtani's spot.

They're calling him up because they believe he's ready.

The expectation will be for De Paula to get a significant runway as the Dodgers' designated hitter while Ohtani recovers.

Mookie Betts hasn't seen much of him outside of spring training, but he's already intrigued.

“I know he's a good kid, and we'll see. We'll see how it goes. I'm excited if that's the case. I'm excited to see him.”

For the Dodgers, that's the immediate future. Ohtani goes on the IL. De Paula comes up.

And the Dodgers hope the latter can provide enough production to make the former's absence manageable. That's a massive ask for a 21-year-old making his major-league debut. But this organization doesn't seem particularly concerned about asking him to do it.

And maybe that's because the Dodgers know something everyone else is about to find out.

De Paula is the Dodgers' top prospect for a reason.

The Dodgers will get an off day Thursday before heading to Miami. They'll arrive there with a seven-game winning streak, a sweep of the Reds, a 14-run offensive explosion and a pitching staff that continues to look increasingly dangerous. But they'll also arrive without Ohtani.

That's the story now.

The Dodgers can win 14-1. They can sweep a team. They can hit four home runs. Yamamoto can look like a postseason ace.

None of it changes the reality that their most important player is headed to the injured list.

The Dodgers aren't thinking about September anymore.

They're thinking about October.

And whether this decision ultimately proves to be the smartest move of the season may not be known until Ohtani steps into the batter's box in October.