The decision is partly a matter of comfort, with Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto accustomed to pitching essentially once a week dating back to their time in Japan. It also factored prominently, the Dodgers believe, into their ability to land phenom Roki Sasaki this winter — like his countrymen, Sasaki is used to pitching on a once-per-week schedule.

Shohei Ohtani plans to throw his first bullpen this weekend as he aims to return to the mound from a one-season pitching layoff caused by elbow surgery.

After the Dodgers won the World Series, Shohei Ohtani is putting in the work to help the team go back-to-back.