Shohei Ohtani hits leadoff homer in NLCS Game 4 2024

NEW YORK — Breaking news: Shohei Ohtani got a hit with nobody on base.

Silencing the noise about his strange splits to start this postseason — 7-for-9 with runners on base and 0-for-22 with 11 strikeouts with the bases empty through Game 3 of the National League Championship Series — Ohtani led off the Dodgers’ 10-2 win in Game 4 with a laser-beam homer to right-center field for a quick lead.

“I can’t even hit the ball that hard

with an aluminum bat, and Shohei is doing it with [wood],” said Freddie Freeman. “It’s just amazing.”

The seventh leadoff home run in Dodgers postseason history was a no-doubter off Mets lefty Jose Quintana. It sailed a Statcast-projected 422 feet after leaving Ohtani’s bat at 117.8 mph, making it the third-hardest homer in the postseason since Statcast began tracking in 2015.

Here are the Dodgers’ other leadoff homers in the postseason:

David Freese (2): 2018 NLCS G6, 2018 WS G5
Joc Pederson: 2018 NLDS G1
Chris Taylor: 2017 World Series G1
Carl Crawford: 2013 NLDS G4
Davey Lopes: 1978 World Series G6

For the Mets, it meant a deficit two pitches into the night.

“There’s not any ballparks that are going to hold that,” Mets outfielder Brandon Nimmo said. “He’s pretty special, and I think the whole game knows that by now.”

“When he goes out there, first at-bat of the game, and hits it like that, obviously it’s a good feeling for them,” said Mets manager Carlos Mendoza. “We knew that wasn’t going to beat us, but we couldn’t just stop it.”

For Ohtani, it was picking up where he left off in Game 3, with a moonshot of a three-run homer that sailed over the right-field foul pole in the eighth inning.

“I’m excited for him. I think the moment isn’t too big,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said going into Game 4. “I think that you’ve seen other superstars in years past, their first postseason, you could see them trying too hard. I don’t see that with Shohei. But I will say that that homer [Wednesday] night was really good to see for him.

“I don’t think there’s a hitter that says when runners are in scoring position that they’re not more focused. I think that is a part of it. But I still like him in any spot.”

That includes with the bases empty or runners aboard.

“I think it was bigger for Sho, just getting a hit with no one on base. It’s pretty wild numbers,” said Max Muncy. “But it was a big start for us. He got a good pitch to hit, didn’t miss it, and it definitely electrified us.”

The Mets were done with the electrifying. Ohtani walked in each of his next three plate appearances. He’s walked seven times in 21 plate appearances this series and — small sample alert — has a 1.238 OPS in the NLCS after a .623 OPS in the NL Division Series against the Padres.

“Obviously, when Shohei hits a ball hard, you don’t want to get beat by Shohei again,” said Teoscar Hernández. “He knows it.”

Said Ohtani, through interpreter Will Ireton: “The focus has been pretty much the same regardless of the situation if there’s runners on or not. Kind of stick to the same plan, the same approach.”

When he connected, Ohtani turned and pointed emphatically to the Dodgers’ dugout. What was that about?

“Freddie talked to me to make sure that I joined the party earlier than later,” Ohtani said. “So I was able to do that this time in my first at-bat. That was something that we talked about.”