LOS ANGELES — It seemed like the first time. It had been so long since Shohei Ohtani pitched — and on such a smaller stage than a sold-out Dodger Stadium for the defending World Series champions — that his days as a two-way player had receded into myth.

One inning, five batters, 28 pitches brought it all back.

Twenty-one months after his second elbow surgery and 22 months after his last start with the Angels, Ohtani took the mound in a major league game, resuming the pitching half of his unique career with an inning against the San Diego Padres on Monday night.

Ohtani gave up a run but drove in two with his bat as the Dodgers put together a 6-3 victory over the Padres.

“Definitely a little bit more (nervous) than when I was solely a position player,” Ohtani said through his interpreter.

“I’m just really grateful, reflecting back on all the support that I received from the doctors that operated on me, the support staff, the team and everybody who supported me along the way. I’m just grateful, aside from the results, to be able to show and be grateful for the moment I had today.”

Hours before game time, Ohtani was at his locker, yawning as if it were any other work day. The excitement in the stadium made it clear this wasn’t. Half the crowd seemed to be wearing Ohtani jerseys and they came to celebrate baseball’s unicorn returning to the mound, reacting to each pitch in his one inning — reminiscent of Ohtani’s at-bats in the Tokyo Series when even his foul balls prompted excited “oohs” and “ahhs.”

“You could feel the excitement,” Dodgers catcher Will Smith said. “You could see all the fans that flocked to the bullpen to watch him warm up.”

Ohtani emerged from the home dugout at 6:30 p.m. and headed toward the outfield to begin his pregame preparations, drawing a roar from the early arrivals in the crowd, on their feet in anticipation.

Forty minutes later, he took the mound to Michael Buble’s version of “Feeling Good,” his walkup song getting an extended play as he warmed up.

The man of the hour threw his first pitch in a major league game since Aug. 23, 2023 — a 97.6 mph fastball that Padres leadoff man Fernando Tatis Jr. fouled off. Tatis worked the count full before dumping a single into center field.

An Ohtani wild pitch moved Tatis to second and Luis Arraez followed with a line-drive single, moving Tatis to third. He tagged up and scored just ahead of the throw when Manny Machado lifted a sacrifice fly to Andy Pages.

Ohtani needed 18 pitches to get that first out. Two ground outs followed to end the inning — and Ohtani’s pitching debut. He averaged 99.1 mph on nine four-seam fastballs and touched 100.2 mph to Arraez, a significant jump from his live batting practice sessions.

“I was aiming to sit 95-96, but the game intensity really allowed me to throw a little harder,” Ohtani said. “I was able to adjust back to being able to throw 95 and 96 against Bogaerts in the last at-bat.”