If there is even a .0001 percent chance that Shohei Ohtani will not pitch again this season, the chances of the Los Angeles Dodgers admitting it are about the same as a massive snowstorm hitting Miami.The trade deadline is Monday. The Dodgers, back-to-back World Series champions and perennial major-league leaders in sandbagging, are not going to compromise their leverage if they intend to pursue a starting pitcher, namely back-to-back AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal.The Dodgers mostly implement their “hang around the backboard” strategy in free agency, masking their intentions until signing a Kyle Tucker or some other flavor of the month. With Ohtani, they might simply be employing another of their trademark practices, slow-playing an injured player to ensure he is ready for October.Ohtani said Tuesday night that both his left knee and right biceps are not 100 percent. The Dodgers are concerned that if he rushes back to the mound too quickly, he might compensate for his knee and jeopardize his arm. Any doubts beyond that, if they exist, the Dodgers are not about to share.Where will Tarik Skubal end up?Cody Stavenhagen and moreIn any case, the implications of Ohtani’s injuries extend beyond the deadline. To the postseason. To awards season. Perhaps to the rest of his career.Ohtani’s chances of winning his first Cy Young Award, never all that great to begin with, are pretty much kaput. His stranglehold on a third straight MVP and fifth in six years no longer is guaranteed. And if at 32 he is struggling to withstand the rigors of both pitching and hitting, his ability to continue dazzling us as a two-way superstar might not be guaranteed, either.All those are discussions are for another time.The deadline is five days away.For weeks now, all we’ve heard from the Dodgers is talk about how their pitching calvary is returning, how they’re eager to make prospect-for-prospect trades, how they might be more likely to sell than buy.Sure. OK. And if the Detroit Tigers are willing to deal Skubal, at a time when Ohtani is dealing with two different ailments that have kept him off the mound since July 3, the Dodgers are just going to point to their $400 million payroll and say, “Nah, we’re good?”Nope. Not with greater payroll restrictions coming in the next collective-bargaining agreement, in one form or another. And not with the Dodgers seeking to become the first team to win three consecutive Series titles since the 1998-2000 New York Yankees.Blake Snell is getting closer to returning. Tyler Glasnow supposedly is not far behind. But neither is exactly an enduring picture of health. Meanwhile, Roki Sasaki remains a wild card, and Justin Wrobleski is on the verge of surpassing his career-high in innings.Outside of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, which of the Dodgers’ starting pitchers warrants genuine trust?The Dodgers always were going to lurk on Skubal, if for no other reason than to drive up the price for other contenders pursuing him. And, thanks to the strength of their farm system and seemingly endless capacity to spend, they likely would be the favorites to land him if that is what they want to do.Ten Dodgers prospects, six of whom are outfielders, are included in MLB.com’s latest Top 100. The Dodgers can offer Emmet Sheehan if the Tigers want a controllable starting pitcher to immediately replace Skubal. And for a team already more than $100 million over the highest luxury-tax threshold, adding the approximately $9.5 million Skubal is owed for the rest of the season would be the equivalent of buying a pack of gum.Major League Baseball, much as it relishes portraying the Dodgers as baseball’s bogeymen, probably is rooting for Skubal to L.A. Many fans would howl anew that the sport’s competitive landscape is unfair, bolstering the league’s argument for a salary cap. But if Ohtani is not Ohtani – if his injuries not only prevent him from pitching, but also compromise his offense – the Dodgers will be far from a lock to three-peat.Frankly, it’s surprising Ohtani even acknowledged his physical issues Tuesday night, in his first comments to reporters in 17 days. Often, in the words of the late Winston Churchill, he is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.Remember how Ohtani and his handlers initially would not reveal the nature of his second elbow operation in September 2023, which turned out to be a Tommy John/internal brace hybrid? Ohtani is never one to temper expectations. But by being so forthright, he provided an explanation of why he is not performing at his usual super-human level.Neither his knee nor biceps is keeping Ohtani out of the Dodgers’ lineup. He continues to be one of the game’s best offensive players, going 3-for-4 and hitting his 23rd home run Tuesday night. But in each of the past three seasons, his OPS was over 1.000. This year it’s .924, fourth in the NL. He hit a career-high 55 homers last season. He currently is on pace for 35.The Dodgers’ position-player group is the oldest in the majors. Third baseman Max Muncy, 36, and first baseman Freddie Freeman, 35, remain their two best hitters. But shortstop Mookie Betts, 33, is in his third straight season of offensive decline. And while Ohtani is still elite, the Dodgers know, even with all their young talent coming, that age at some point will bite them.Which is why a push for Skubal always made sense, and makes even more sense with each passing day. A number of other teams from both big and small markets also want the Tigers’ ace. But of course, it would be just like the Dodgers to bully everyone out of the way.Skubal, 29, entered his start Wednesday against Baltimore with a 2.70 ERA in eight outings since returning from an innovative surgery to remove a loose body from his left elbow. Unlike Snell, Glasnow and Ohtani, he is beyond his physical issues. And as he approaches his first crack at free agency, he is highly motivated to be at his best.Maybe the Dodgers get him. Maybe they don’t. But the way this is trending, which way would you bet?