LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Dodgers took a 2-0 stranglehold on the World Series after defeating the New York Yankees on Saturday but a worrying injury to Japanese star Shohei Ohtani took the shine off the 4-2 victory.
Home runs from Tommy Edman, Teoscar Hernandez and Freddie Freeman and a clinical pitching performance from Yoshinobu Yamamoto laid the foundations for the win at Dodger Stadium which leaves the Dodgers in a commanding position heading into Game 3 of the best-of-seven series on Monday.
But the post-game celebrations were muted by the injury suffered by Ohtani in the seventh inning as he attempted to steal second base.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Ohtani had suffered a “little left shoulder subluxation” – defined by the US National Institutes of Health as a partial or incomplete dislocation – and said Ohtani would undergo an MRI scan to determine the severity of the injury.
“We’re going to get some tests at some point tonight, tomorrow, and then we’ll know more in the next couple days,” Roberts said.
However Roberts said team medical staff were “encouraged” by Ohtani’s range of motion and strength, and said he expected the Japanese leadoff hitter to feature again in the series.