Superstar slugs 47th HR, steals 48th base as Dodgers ride HR barrage past Chicago
LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani wasted no time to set a new career high in homers.
Ohtani pummeled a Jordan Wicks breaking ball in the first inning of Wednesday’s 10-8 win over the Cubs, sending it out to right-center field in a hurry. It was Ohtani’s 12th career leadoff homer and sixth this season, but more importantly, the two-time American League Most Valuable Player set a new career high with 47 homers.
His first-inning blast had an exit velocity of 118.1 mph and traveled a Statcast-projected 405 feet. It’s the third-fastest homer of the season for Ohtani, who has also slugged two long balls at 118.7 mph.
The 47 homers tie Ohtani with Cody Bellinger for the third most in franchise history, putting him just one shy of matching Adrián Beltré for second most and two away from tying Shawn Green’s record of 49.
“For him to hit the ball 118 mph at that degree, it’s usually a double,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. “But for Shohei, it’s a home run. He’s playing tremendous baseball. You can see he’s picking us up big time.”
Ohtani entered Wednesday with 17 games left on the schedule, trying to become the first player in Major League history to record 50 homers and 50 stolen bases in a single season.
With Wednesday’s blast, Ohtani now needs just three homers to reach 50. Ohtani also recorded his 48th stolen base of the season in the second inning. It’s the 12th time Ohtani hit a homer and stole a base in the same game, tying Ronald Acuña Jr. and Bobby Bonds for the second most in Major League history (since 1900). He’s just one game shy from tying Rickey Henderson, who did it 13 times in 1986.
“We all definitely know what’s going on. It’s fun to watch,” said Dodgers catcher Will Smith. “It’s fun to get a chance to see it every night. I think he’ll do it. I’m just trying to enjoy it as he tries to get there, but more importantly he’s trying to help us win ballgames.”
Aside from making history on the field, Ohtani is also vying to become the first player to win the MVP Award as a full-time designated hitter.
“Obviously we want him to get there, because that means he’s doing good. It’s helping our team out if he gets there,” said third baseman Max Muncy. “He’s unbelievable. Every night, I feel like he does something we’ve never seen. Tonight, he hits a ball 118 [mph]. I feel sorry for the fan who tried to catch it. Everything he does is so impressive, so it’s fun to be a part of it.”
“Him being able to take down 600 plate appearances has been very big for us,” Roberts said before Wednesday’s game. “And he’s having an unprecedented season.”
Ohtani’s leadoff homer opened up the floodgates for what turned out to be one of the best innings of the season for the Dodgers. With two outs in the inning, Tommy Edman hit his third homer in the last two games, a two-run shot to give the Dodgers a 3-2 lead.
Smith, whom the Dodgers are trying to get going offensively before the start of the postseason, followed with a blast of his own. Muncy, the star of his own bobblehead night on Wednesday, capped off the frame by completing back-to-back-to-back homers against Wicks.
It’s the second time in the last two weeks the Dodgers have hit back-to-back-to-back homers in an inning, and just the seventh time in franchise history that the Dodgers have hit four homers in an inning.
“I saw a lot of fight,” Roberts said. “It’s been a while since I’ve felt the energy, the buzz in that first inning. There was a lot going on. Fans were just going crazy, it was a lot of fun. Lot of energy in the dugout.”
After the Cubs mounted a comeback against Bobby Miller, Edman wasn’t done with his recent power surge. Edman hit his second homer of the night in the eighth inning, a two-run blast that gave the Dodgers a 10-7 lead. Edman now has five career multihomer games, two of them coming in a span of 24 hours.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever done that before in my life,” Edman said. “But I feel like I’ve kind of gotten locked into a pretty good routine in the cage, really working on mechanics and having consistent movements in my swing, and I think the results are paying off.”
