PITTSBURGH, June 12 -- For six innings on Thursday night Shohei Ohtani was the best version of himself, and then he was gone, and for a Dodgers team that has spent the spring losing arms it could not spare, the seventh inning at PNC Park arrived like a held breath. Ohtani left the game with left knee inflammation, replaced by pinch hitter Santiago Espinal, and a routine June win turned instantly into a vigil over the most valuable player in the sport.

The reassurance came quickly, and from the right person. Dave Roberts, the Dodgers manager, said his level of concern was "not high" and called the removal "proactive." Ohtani, he explained, first felt something after a stolen-base attempt on what turned out to be a foul ball, the kind of s...