Miami (AFP) – Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani edged closer to Major League Baseball history on Thursday, belting his 49th home run and bagging his 50th and 51st stolen bases. The Japanese standout smashed his 49th home run of the season in the sixth inning of the Dodgers’ game against the Marlins in Miami, moving one homer away from becoming the first player in MLB history to have 50 home runs and 50 steals in a season.
Already the fastest player to reach 40 homers and 40 stolen bases in a season, Ohtani nabbed his 50th steal in the first inning. 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’s 438-foot blast into the upper deck of seats in the sixth inning put the Dodgers up 9-3. With 49 homers, he tied Shawn Green’s record for most by a Dodger in a season, set in 2001.
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