Shohei Ohtani rehabbing from shoulder surgery, aims to be ready for Opening Day

Shohei Ohtani is in the early stages of rehabbing from arthroscopic surgery to repair a labrum tear in his left shoulder following the Los Angeles Dodgers' World Series championship over the New York Yankees last month.

"We've already removed the stitches," the Japanese star said Thursday in Los Angeles after winning his third Most Valuable Player award, his first with the Dodgers. "The current goal is to bring back my range of motion. Today we started working on core and we're slowly ramping up right now."

[Related: Shohei Ohtani wins NL MVP by unanimous vote]

Ohtani had the surgery on Nov. 5, four days after he and the team paraded through downtown Los Angeles and celebrated with fans at Dodger Stadium.

"We've been stuck in rehab every day and I've been sitting on my bed relaxing," he said through a translator. "We haven't been able to take some time to celebrate as a family."

Ohtani didn't pitch this season while rehabbing from elbow surgery in September 2023. He injured his shoulder attempting to steal second base during Game 2 of the World Series.

"The goal is to be ready for opening day that includes hitting and pitching, but we are kind of taking our time," he said. "Obviously want to make sure I'm healthy first. We're not going to rush anything. We're going to take a little bit more time and be conservative."

Ohtani's most anxious moment during his stellar first regular season with the Dodgers didn't involve his performance.

It was about his beloved dog, Decoy.

"The most nerve-wracking game, the most nervous I was when we had Decoy throw out the pitch," he said.

Much like his owner, Decoy performed flawlessly on that August night, trotting from the mound to deliver the ball in his mouth to a waiting Ohtani behind the plate. Ohtani later homered leading off against Baltimore on his second bobblehead night.

They were together on Thursday, when the Dutch Kooikerhondje appeared briefly on television as Ohtani, sitting next to his wife, Mamiko Tanaka, discussed his MVP honor. He called it "very humbling."

The 30-year-old designated hitter took all 30 of the first-place votes from the Baseball Writers' Association, becoming the first player to win MVP honors unanimously three times. He won twice in the AL with the Los Angeles Angels.

"It's going to motivate me more to continue to help the team win next year," Ohtani said through an interpreter. "We'd like to continue to win the World Series each year."

Ohtani became just the second player in major league history to win the award in both leagues, joining Frank Robinson, who won NL MVP in 1961 and AL MVP in 1966.

Ohtani is likely to see a familiar face in the majors soon. Highly touted pitcher Roki Sasaki is expected to sign with a Major League Baseball team by January. He and Ohtani were teammates when Japan won the World Baseball Classic in 2023.

"No, I haven't really been recruiting him in any way," Ohtani said. "I consider him a friend, so we'll talk every so often about baseball in general and life. I'll respect his decision wherever he wants to sign and I think he'll do well wherever he goes."

Reporting by The Associated Press.