Shohei Ohtani will not play in Tuesday's MLB All-Star Game. The Los Angeles Dodgers announced that Ohtani has been scratched due to left knee irritation, ending his streak of All-Star appearances at five consecutive seasons.
Ohtani first earned All-Star honors five seasons ago and made his first start in the game in 2021. His absence this year, reported by Fox News, is a significant blow to an event that relies heavily on star power to drive television ratings and fan interest.
The Dodgers said Ohtani will serve as the team's designated hitter up until the All-Star break, but that he will "have some interventions on his knee to put him in the best position for the second half of the season." The knee has been a recurring issue for him this season.
Despite the injury, Ohtani's 2026 numbers remain exceptional. He is hitting .290 with a .939 OPS and posting a 1.79 ERA on the mound, the second-lowest in the sport among pitchers with 80 or more innings. He has 20 home runs and 56 RBI on the season. His OPS ranks seventh-best in the league.
Ohtani is on pace for what could be his fifth MVP award in six seasons. He hit 99 combined home runs in 2024 and 2025, leading the National League with a 1.025 OPS over that stretch. He did not pitch in 2024 following elbow surgery, but returned to the mound last year and posted a 2.87 ERA with 11.9 strikeouts per nine innings.
He is the only player in MLB history to have 300 or more plate appearances and 40 or more innings pitched in six separate seasons. Babe Ruth accomplished the same feat only twice and never stole 50 bases in a season.
Ohtani is not the only marquee absence from the All-Star Game. Aaron Judge, the other central figure in the sport's current era, has been out since late May with a fractured rib and will also miss the Midsummer Classic.
The combination of the two biggest names in baseball sitting out the same All-Star Game is an unusual circumstance for the league. The Dodgers have not said whether Ohtani's knee issue will require any extended absence beyond the All-Star break.
