2024-09-20 16:00:03
There is no more incredible baseball player than Shohei Ohtani. We knew this already, and yet, on Thursday, he reminded us of it once again.
Entering the day, Ohtani was two homers and one stolen base shy of becoming the first player in MLB history with a 50-50 season. He’s a great player, but any logical baseball fan would have looked at that line and figured he would establish his new club by perhaps the end of the weekend.
He didn’t just reach 50-50, he did it in breathtaking fashion. Let’s dig in.
– We’ll start with the basic facts to get you situated. Ohtani went 6-for-6 on the day, with two doubles and three home runs. He had 10 RBIs, two stolen bases and 17 total bases.
– It was the first three-homer game in MLB history where the player also had multiple stolen bases. But wait, there’s more. Ohtani was also the first player since at least 1901 with at least five hits, multiple homers and multiple stolen bases — that one was true even before he hit his third home run.
– Ohtani inaugurated more combinations, too. He is the first player with at least five extra-base hits and multiple stolen bases in a game since at least 1901. And again, he didn’t just have any of these groundbreaking lines, he did it to reach 50-50 and the postseason.
– Speaking of combinations, consider this, per STATS: Only one MLB player has had any games in a career with, individually, at least 10 RBIs, six hits, five extra-base hits, three home runs and two stolen bases — that means putting up any of those discrete stats in a game, not necessarily all at once. Ohtani is the only player to do this since RBIs became an official stat in 1920, and he checked off every box.
– As noted above, Ohtani knocked in 10 runs. It’s the 16th 10-RBI game since RBIs became official, and the first at the hands of a Dodger, as well as the first from the leadoff spot. The previous 15 players to do so combined for zero stolen bases in those games. Ohtani had two.
– He ended the day with 17 total bases, tied for fourth most in a game since 1901. It’s the seventh time a batter had at least 17. Before Ohtani, the most total bases by a player in a game who also had multiple stolen bases was 11, by Kirk Gibson on May 28, 1995, and Braggo Roth on June 4, 1919.
– We’ve mentioned how this performance came with the Dodgers on the precipice of a playoff berth. That situation was of special interest to Ohtani, who entered the day having played 865 MLB games, the most among all players on an active roster or injured list to have never played in the postseason. That just makes his output on this day, of all days, even more incredible. This is why baseball is the best.
– In the process, Ohtani became the Dodgers’ all-time single-season home run leader. His first homer tied Shawn Green at 49 (2001), and his next one gave him sole possession and then some.
– It was Ohtani’s fourth game this season with at least a home run and multiple stolen bases, tying Eric Davis in 1987 for the second most in a season since 1900, behind only Rickey Henderson’s five in 1986. It was also his 13th game with at least one of each, tying Henderson for the most in a season.
– Before Thursday, no MLB player had even had multiple home runs and multiple stolen bases in a game since Mookie Betts on Aug. 23, 2020. He and Ohtani are the only Dodgers to do this since at least 1901.
– We know Ohtani is the first member of the 50-50 club, but he was already in a league of his own once he reached 43-43. So here’s another way to put 50-50 in perspective: His 51 home runs are the most in a 50-steal season in MLB history. The prior mark was 41, by Ronald Acuña Jr. last season. Similarly, his 51 stolen bases are the most in a 50-homer season. The prior record was 24, done by Willie Mays in 1955 and tied by Alex Rodriguez in 2007.
