LOS ANGELES -- Shohei Ohtani is expected to return to the lineup Wednesday, the first day he is eligible to be activated off the injured list, and Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts says he looks "considerably" healthier than he did a couple of weeks ago.
"If he was a five, he's probably an eight or a nine right now," Roberts said, referencing a 1-to-10 scale.
The Dodgers activated right-hander Roki Sasaki and center fielder Andy Pages off the IL on Tuesday, a major development in the leadup to October.
Sasaki, who has been recovering from a blister suffered in an Aug. 26 start, was available out of the bullpen for Tuesday's series opener against the San Diego Padres and could be an option to again close out games in the postseason. Pages, who fractured his left hand on Aug. 22, will reprise his role as an everyday player at a premium position.
Ohtani landed on the IL because of lingering pain in his right biceps and left knee on Sept. 8 but began a hitting progression seven days ago and advanced to taking as many as 40 swings off Trajekt, the popular pitching simulator, on Saturday. Ohtani also ran the bases that day. On Tuesday, he went through his typical pregame workout.
Ohtani, 32, will only hit the rest of this season and was struggling in that realm before landing on the IL, compiling only seven hits and 22 strikeouts over his past 54 at-bats. Roberts previously indicated the plan was for Ohtani to play in all of the Dodgers' remaining five regular-season games to get reacclimated to major league pitching.
Where he hits, though, is up for debate. In all likelihood, Ohtani will continue to lead off against opposing right-handed pitchers. But Mookie Betts' recent hot streak -- heading into this week, he was hitting.373/.468/.746 in September -- has Roberts weighing the possibility of batting him leadoff against lefties.
What Ohtani's return means for outfield prospect Josue De Paula is also an open question.
De Paula, 21, has eight hits and 10 walks in 38 plate appearances since temporarily replacing Ohtani at designated hitter. The Dodgers are strongly considering him as an option to be a left-handed bat off the bench during the postseason, though they might send him down as the corresponding move for activating Ohtani to give him at-bats in this week's Triple-A championship series.
The other candidate would be backup catcher Dalton Rushing, who has an elbow injury that is preventing him from throwing. Rushing is expected to be activated at some point in the next three days, but Roberts acknowledged it would be difficult for him to be thrust into a pinch-hitting role in October after playing in only four games since the start of September.
"There's potential slug with both those guys," Roberts said. "It's going to be a good debate."
