Ohtani makes MLB history with first 50-homer, 50-steal season / Photo: © GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP
Ohtani makes MLB history with first 50-homer, 50-steal season
Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani made Major League Baseball history on Thursday, becoming the first player ever to record 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season.
Ohtani officially established MLB's 50-50 club with a seventh-inning homer in the Dodgers' game against the Marlins in Miami.
His second home run of the contest gave him 50 for the season, after two stolen bases earlier in the game pushed his tally of steals to 51.
The Japanese standout smashed his 49th home run of the season in the sixth inning, tying Shawn Green's record for most by a Dodger in a single season, set in 2001.
One inning later he launched another, bringing fans at LoanDepot Park to their feet.
Already the fastest player to reach 40 homers and 40 stolen bases in a season, Ohtani had nabbed his 50th steal in the first inning when he belted a leadoff double and stole third, his well-timed slide allowing him to evade a tag by Marlins third baseman Connor Norby.
Ohtani scored on a sacrifice fly and one inning later he notched his 51st steal, swiping second after a single.
With his 50th stolen base, Ohtani surpassed Dodgers manager Dave Roberts for the second most by a Japanese-born player in MLB history, a list led by Ichiro Suzuki who stole 56 in 2001.
Ohtani, a two-time American League Most Valuable Player with the Angels, had earlier this season become MLB's all-time leader in home runs among Japanese-born players when he surpassed the 175 of Hideki Matsuyama.
The 30-year-old, who signed a record $700 million free agent deal with the Dodgers in the off-season, now has 221 career home runs.
(N.Lambert--LPdF)
