Shohei Ohtani continues to inch closer to making MLB history in his first season with the Los Angeles Dodgers, and with that has come taking hold of various franchise records.
Ohtani hit his 49th home run of the season in the sixth inning on Thursday, tying with Shawn Green for the Dodgers franchise record. Green hit his 49 home runs in 2001.
Green broke the Dodgers home run record that previously had been shared by Gary Sheffield (2000) and Duke Snider (1956), as they both hit 43.
Adrian Beltré (48 home runs in 2007) and Cody Bellinger (47; 2017) both came close to Green’s Dodgers record in their respective seasons.
While they fell short, Ohtani has long appeared to be a virtual lock for setting a new Dodgers home run record. He previously became the fastest player in MLB history to hit 40 homers and collect 40 stolen bases. Overall, six players have ever reached those totals in a single season.
When Ohtani tied with Beltré and Bellinger for the second-most home runs in Dodgers franchise history, it also set a new MLB record as the all-time leader among Asian-born players. Ohtani’s 219th home run of his career broke a tie with Shin Soo-Choo.
Ohtani, a native of Ōshū, Iwate, Japan, surpassed Hideki Matsui’s 175 career home runs earlier this season for the top spot on the all-time MLB list by Japanese-born players.
Prior to this year, Ohtani’s career high in home runs was 46 hit in 2021, when he won the first of two American League MVP Awards.
Shohei Ohtani 50-50 tracker
Ohtani now is just one home run away from becoming the first player ever in the 50/50 club. Ohtani reached 50 — and 51 — stolen bases in Thursday’s game against the Miami Marlins.
He previously became the first player to reach at least 43 home runs and 43 stolen bases in a single season, and every one since then has extended his record.
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