LA Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani to miss MLB All-Star Game as knee problems continue

[p]"[b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/ohtani-shohei/QoeWGRko/"]Shohei Ohtani[/a] will not make his scheduled start on the mound this evening against the ([a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/arizona-diamondbacks/8bP2bXmH/"]Arizona[/a]) D-backs due to continued irritation in his left knee,[/b]" the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/los-angeles-dodgers/nwPDBpVc/"]Dodgers[/a] said in a statement.[/p][p]"[b]He will serve as the designated hitter the rest of the weekend, but following the series against the D-backs he will have some interventions on his knee to put him in the best position for the second half of the season.[/b][/p][p]"[b]Unfortunately, due to these events, he will not be able to travel to Philadelphia and participate in the 2026 All-Star Game,[/b]" the Dodgers concluded.[/p][p]Ohtani exited a June 11 game with discomfort in his left knee and was out of the team's hitting lineup the following day.[/p][p]Since then, he has been managing the problem, which is in the same knee upon which he had surgery in 2019 to address a congenital condition in which the kneecap never fully fuses into a single bone.[/p][embed guid="83148538-9d70-4203-80a0-83ab86294dfb" url="https://x.com/Dodgers/status/2075672138867233140?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]Ohtani, a four-time Most Valuable Player, has shone in both his roles for the Dodgers this season, despite coping with a few minor injuries, including a blister on his pitching hand and a biceps issue as well as the knee discomfort.[/p][p]At the plate, he is batting .290 with 20 home runs and 56 runs-batted-in while on the mound he has an earned run average of 1.79 with 95 strikeouts, building an 8-2 record.[/p][p]Ohtani hit his 300th career homer on Tuesday, becoming the first Japanese-born player to reach the milestone in MLB.[/p][p]He had been slated for a designated hitter role in the All-Star Game, which will be played in the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/philadelphia-phillies/QTNHA4p4/"]Philadelphia Phillies[/a]' Citizens Bank Park next Tuesday.[/p]