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    • Dodgers reveal status for Game 3 of WS
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    Dodgers reveal status for Game 3 of WS

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    NEW YORK — If Shohei Ohtani can handle the pain, he will play in Game 3 of the World Series for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

    Manager Dave Roberts said Sunday night at Yankee Stadium that he expects Ohtani to play in Game 3 Monday night if the slugger and leadoff hitter can tolerate the discomfort two days after suffering a subluxation of his left shoulder in Game 2 on Saturday night.

    “If (Ohtani) feels good enough to go, I see no reason why he won’t be there,” Roberts said Sunday night.

    Ohtani flew separately from the team and was expected to arrive in New York on Sunday evening, Roberts said, after undergoing tests on the shoulder in Los Angeles. The manager said hitting balls off a tee and taking batting practice in an indoor cage, “that’s going to be significant.

    “I think he’s obviously very aware of himself and his body.”

    After Saturday night’s game, Roberts sounded confident that Ohtani had avoided a serious injury, but the Dodgers’ designated hitter needed further testing to confirm this.

    On Sunday, Roberts said Ohtani’s situation is not much different from that of Cody Bellinger, who suffered a dislocated shoulder in 2020 while celebrating his go-ahead home run in the National League Championship Series. The shoulder was put back into place and Bellinger played in the World Series.

    Still, Ohtani’s situation is slightly better than Bellinger’s: Ohtani hurt his left shoulder and Bellinger his right shoulder. Since both are left-handed hitters, the stress is much greater on the right lead arm.

    Ohtani injured his left shoulder sliding into second base on an attempted steal in the seventh inning of Game 2 and left the field with a trainer after being left hanging on the ground.

    “The whole stadium went quiet,” Dodgers outfielder Teoscar Hernandez said.

    The Dodgers have a 2-0 lead in the World Series and Games 3, 4 and 5 (if necessary) are scheduled for Monday through Wednesday at Yankee Stadium in New York.

    Maybe Ohtani won’t be at his best. But Roberts isn’t too concerned about that, especially given Ohtani’s outsized presence should he dig in against Yankees Game 3 starter Clarke Schmidt.

    “If he can play, if he’s willing to play, he’s going to play,” Roberts said. “Schmidt will know Shohei is in the box, so that means everything.”

    Ohtani signed for $700 million last winter and became the first player in history with 50 home runs and 50 steals in a single season and will likely be the unanimous National League MVP. Playing in his first career postseason, the 30-year-old has three home runs, 10 RBI and an .863 OPS in 13 games during the Los Angeles playoffs.

    He went 1-for-8 in the first two games of the World Series against the Yankees.

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