Dodgers Aim for World Series Three-Peat as Ohtani Takes All-Star Break to Treat Knee Injury

Major League Baseball (MLB) has paused its season ahead of the All-Star break. As the Los Angeles Dodgers push for a third consecutive World Series title, they aim to use this break to address the persistent knee injury troubling their Japanese two-way superstar, Shohei Ohtani.

According to AFP, just before MLB entered its All-Star break, the Dodgers lost 3-5 to the Arizona Diamondbacks. Despite the loss, they maintain the best record in the league this season at 61 wins and 36 losses, leading their division by 11.5 games over the second-place Diamondbacks.

Ohtani hit a home run in his first at-bat of the game, but the star player, long plagued by knee pain, will miss the All-Star Game. He is scheduled to receive an injection and have fluid drained from his left knee, resting for four days during the break. The Dodgers will face the New York Yankees on the road on July 17.

"Sometimes my knee gets inflamed, sometimes it feels better," Ohtani said. He believes the knee issue may be linked to his pitching mechanics.

"For my knee, I think it's more related to the pitching motion—that's something I need to improve," he added.

Ohtani is on track to win his fifth career Most Valuable Player (MVP) award, which would mark his fourth consecutive MVP win overall and third straight in the National League. He won the American League MVP in his final season with the Los Angeles Angels in 2023.

Dave Roberts, the Dodgers' manager, said, "He's done a great job managing his knee. If we have the chance to get ahead of it and drain the fluid, we want to do that."

This season, Ohtani is batting .293 with 22 home runs and 58 RBIs. As a pitcher, he has a 1.79 ERA, 95 strikeouts, and an 8-2 win-loss record.

The Dodgers won the World Series in 2024 by defeating the Yankees and secured back-to-back titles last year by defeating the Toronto Blue Jays.

If they win again this year, the Dodgers will become the first team in National League history to achieve a World Series three-peat and the first in MLB since the Yankees accomplished the feat from 1998 to 2000.