Ohtani hits his 41st home run of the season with a bang… Spurring the first ever 50-50 challenge
Achieved 40-40 in one day
Two-run shot against Tampa Bay
Challenge for MVP of both leagues
Shohei Ohtani (30, Japan) became the first player in Major League Baseball (MLB) history to reach 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases. One day after joining the 40-40 club, he hit his 41st home run of the season.
Ohtani started as the number one and designated hitter in the 2024 MLB home game against the Tampa Bay Rays held at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles (LA), California, USA on the 25th and crossed the fence for the 41st time. Ohtani, who came to the plate with one out and one on base in the bottom of the fifth inning when the team was losing 4-5, hit a two-run home run by hitting a low course splitter on the outside in a match against opposing pitcher Taji Bradley.
Ohtani became the 6th player in MLB history to hit 40 home runs and 40 stolen bases the day before. This is the first record for an Asian player. Previously, in 1988, Jose Canseco (then of the Oakland Athletics) hit 42 home runs and 40 stolen bases. Barry Bonds in 1996 (San Francisco Giants, 42 home runs, 40 stolen bases), Alex Rodriguez in 1998 (Seattle Mariners, 42 home runs, 46 stolen bases), Alfonso Soriano in 2006 (Washington Nationals, 46 home runs, 41 stolen bases), and Ronald Acuña Jr. last year ( atlanta Braves, 41 home runs, 73 stolen bases) were named to the 40-40 club.
Ohtani, who reached 40-40 in 126 games, the fastest in history, continued his challenge of 50-50 by hitting his 41st home run. In MLB, which boasts 141 years of history, no player has yet achieved both 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in one season. If Ohtani adds 9 home runs and 10 stolen bases in the remaining 32 games, he will set the first record in MLB history.
Along with 50-50, Ohtani also has his sights set on the National League Most Valuable Player (MVP). If he, who was selected as the American League MVP in 2021 and last year, is named MVP in the first year of his transfer to the Dodgers, he will become the second player in history to win MVP in both leagues after Frank Robinson, who won MVP in the National League in 1961 and the American League in 1966.
Ohtani also attracted attention by going on the mound before the game and performing bullpen pitching. The number of pitches is 10. It has been about a year since he had surgery on his right elbow in September of last year that he threw a ball from the mound. The Dodgers lost 8-9 to Tampa Bay despite Ohtani’s performance.
Reporter Seo Jae-won jwseo@hankyung.com
