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LOS ANGELES -- The Los Angeles Dodgers expect Shohei Ohtani to pitch again this season, but they're not rushing the two-way superstar back to the mound because of concern about him overcompensating while his left knee heals.
Andrew Friedman downplayed Ohtani's right biceps soreness, too.
"If it weren't for the knee, he would be pitching right now," Friedman said Wednesday. "We didn't want to put him in a position where he was altering his mechanics to try to protect the knee in any way."
The team's president of baseball operations said Ohtani is keeping his right arm active with plyometric throws using a medicine ball that takes the strain off constantly landing on his left leg.
The team wants Ohtani's knee to feel as good as possible before he begins a throwing program on flat ground or off a mound.
"I feel confident that relatively soon he's going to start getting out and start ramping up for catch-play and bullpens and getting him back," Friedman said.
In the meantime, Ohtani will continue serving as the designated hitter. He has said his knee doesn't bother him when he's hitting.
Skubal swan song
DETROIT -- Trade deadline target Tarik Skubal and Detroit fans gave each other a warm farewell Wednesday, just in case this was the two-time Cy Young Award winner's final appearance in a Tigers jersey.
What happened after Skubal left made it all the more likely this was indeed goodbye.
Skubal was cheered at every opportunity by a crowd of 34,406 while taking a shutout into the seventh inning against Baltimore, but then the Orioles rallied from a 7-0 deficit to beat Detroit 10-9 in 12 innings. The loss leaves the Tigers 51-58 and well outside playoff position in the final year they have Skubal under contract.
The vibes were great early. Skubal got a standing ovation when he struck out leadoff hitter Taylor Ward on a 3-2 changeup to record his 1,000th career strikeout.
"For some reason, strikeout marks hit differently for me," he said. "Reaching 200 strikeouts for the first time was a huge milestone for me, and as I was getting close to 1,000, it just felt really cool."
He reached the mark in 857 innings, breaking Max Scherzer's franchise-best mark of 944 2/3 innings.
He got another ovation when Tigers manager A.J. Hinch removed him after Leody Tavares' RBI single with two out in the seventh.
"It is always special when our fans get to their feet and give you a pretty good ovation," he said. "Hopefully, they feel like I've given everything to the team and the city, because I truly have."
Buxton out again
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Twins placed center fielder Byron Buxton on the 10-day injured list on Wednesday with a right hip impingement.
Buxton, who has battled soreness in his right hip most of the season, left Tuesday's 3-2 win over the Kansas City Royals in the fifth inning.
The 32-year-old Buxton spent 15 days on the IL earlier this month with a similar injury. He was unable to play in the All-Star Game after being voted as one of the American League's starting outfielders.
In 82 games this season, Buxton is hitting .263 with 25 homers and 45 RBIs. However, he hasn't homered since June 22, and hit .160 with no extra-base hits in seven games since returning from his first IL stint.
In a corresponding move, the Twins recalled infielder Tristan Gray from Triple-A St. Paul.
Rangers trade for 2
ANAHEIM, Calif. -- The Los Angeles Angels traded reliever Chase Silseth and struggling catcher Logan O'Hoppe to the Texas Rangers for minor league third baseman Angel Arredondo on Wednesday night.
Silseth, 26, was one of the Angels' top relievers, going 3-2 with a 2.72 ERA in 47 games this year. O'Hoppe, 26, appeared in 75 games, batting .209 with 23 RBIs. Arredondo, 19, hit .247 with eight home runs, 15 doubles and 47 RBIs in 86 games for low-A Hickory this season.
Slugger injured
MINNEAPOLIS -- The Kansas City Royals put first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino on the 10-day injured list on Wednesday with a sore right wrist.
Pasquantino is hitting .232 with six home runs and 33 RBIs in 79 games this year. He missed a month earlier this season with a broken hamate bone in the same wrist, which he aggravated during the Royals' 3-2 loss to Minnesota on Tuesday night.
"Just a little bit of wrist soreness," Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. "That's not the kind of thing that you can have go away without some rest. So just trying to make a decision that he needed to get some rest and see if we can get him to calm down."
In 11 games since he returned from the IL on July 11, the 28-year-old hit .282 with one double and no home runs.