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The Dodgers expect Shohei Ohtani to rejoin the team as early as Saturday after going on paternity leave for the birth of his second child, per staff at Dodger Blue. Ohtani missed Friday night’s series opener against the Orioles — a game the Dodgers still managed to win in walk-off fashion for their 23rd comeback victory of the season — but the absence appears set to be a brief one.

Ohtani has been the engine of this Dodgers lineup all season, and even a single-game absence is felt. He’s been managing left knee inflammation that has led the team to limit his two-way workload, but the paternity leave is entirely unrelated to any physical concern. The fact that the club expects him back Saturday suggests he’s feeling good enough to slot right back in without missing additional time. For a player carrying the offensive load Ohtani has carried — and doing so while the Dodgers navigate injuries to other key pieces — that’s the best possible news.

Friday’s game underscored both how much Ohtani means to this roster and how resilient this team has been without its full complement. Playing a man short with their best hitter out, the Dodgers still found a way to pull off a comeback win. That’s now four walk-offs on the season, and 23 wins when trailing at some point in the game. Those numbers speak to a clubhouse that doesn’t fold, even when the lineup card is missing its biggest name.

The timing matters here. We’re heading into a weekend series against Baltimore, a quality opponent, and getting Ohtani back for the Saturday game means we likely only miss him for one contest. Paternity leave in MLB allows players up to three days away from the team, so a Saturday return would put Ohtani back well within that window. There was never any real doubt he’d be back quickly — this was always going to be a short absence — but having the team signal it publicly gives us clarity heading into the rest of the series.

From a bigger-picture standpoint, the Dodgers are in a stretch where every game matters and every lineup decision is being made with an eye toward October. Ohtani’s knee situation is something I’ll keep tracking closely, but his return from paternity leave should be seamless. The team has shown it can gut out wins without him for a night, and now they get him back. That’s exactly how you want this to go.

Source(s): Staff (Dodger Blue) | First reported: June 20, 2026 6:18 AM UTC

God Bless and Go Dodgers