Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani blasts homer in win, achieves statistical feat unseen since Willie Mays
Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani belted his 28th home run of the season in the team's 3-1 win over the Colorado Rockies on Thursday at Coors Field.
With the home run, Ohtani became the first player since Hall of Famer Willie Mays to hit 28 home runs and have six triples through the team's first 80 games in a season. Mays achieved the feat in 1954.
Ohtani's home run came in the top of the seventh inning with the Dodgers up 2-1. There were no runners on and two outs when Ohtani belted Rockies' reliever Tyler Kinley's hanging breaking ball 418 feet into the Dodgers' bullpen.
The three-time MVP is in the midst of another outstanding season for the Dodgers. In 80 games, Ohtani has a .291 batting average with 52 RBI and 11 stolen bases in addition to the 28 home runs.
Ohtani's 28 home runs are tied for second in the big leagues with New York Yankees superstar slugger Aaron Judge. Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh leads Major League Baseball with 32 home runs.
In addition to the excellence Ohtani provides at the plate, the Japanese star has begun pitching for the team.
Ohtani made his debut on the mound on June 16 against the San Diego Padres and pitched one inning while he yielded one run on two hits. Ohtani hadn't pitched since August 2023, after he underwent elbow surgery.
His second appearance was also an inning, when he faced the Washington Nationals on June 22 and pitched a scoreless inning and struck out two batters.
The Dodgers don't want to send Ohtani down to the minor leagues to build up his pitch count, because his bat is too valuable, which is why his first outings have only been an inning long.
Ohtani's next scheduled start is against the Kansas City Royals on Saturday at 4:10 p.m. ET.
The Dodgers (51-31) and Royals (38-43) begin a three-game series at Dodger Stadium on Friday at 8:10 p.m. ET.
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