Shohei Ohtani hit a leadoff home run on Wednesday against the Minnesota Twins, which tied the Los Angeles Dodgers franchise record with a blast in five consecutive games.
Ohtani became the first Dodger to homer in five straight games since Max Muncy from Aug. 15-21, 2019. The Dodgers franchise record is shared by Joc Pederson (2015), Adrián González (2014-2015), Matt Kemp (2010), Shawn Green (2001), Roy Campanella (1950), Muncy and now Ohtani.
In addition, he became the first left-handed batter in the modern era (since 1901) with a streak of five or more games with a home run and a stretch of five or more consecutive games with a stolen base in his MLB career, according to OptaStats.
Ohtani is now looking to break the Dodgers record with a sixth consecutive game with a home run as the team begins a series with the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on Friday. The two-way superstar is also chasing the MLB record of eight consecutive games with a home run, which is a tie between Dale Long (1956), Don Mattingly (1987) and Ken Griffey Jr. (1993).
“I don’t know that answer,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said when asked if Ohtani will break the MLB record. “I do know that if he has the same approach that he’s had the last week, that Green Monster is very short. So any fly ball that he hits will be a homer.
“He’s just got to continue to have that same approach when we go to Boston, and we’ll see what happens.”
The Dodgers are set to face Brayan Bello, Garrett Crochet and Walker Buehler in the three-game series. Of the three, Crochet will be the most difficult matchup as he’s one of the best pitchers in baseball.
If Ohtani does tie the MLB record, he would have a chance to break it on Monday against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ballpark, which is a known to be a hitter’s park with short dimensions.
There’s still a long way for Ohtani to go to tie the record, and it will be difficult to even just set the Dodgers record needing one more home run in the next game. But if anyone can do it, it’s Shohei Ohtani.
Shohei Ohtani home run pace
Ohtani currently has 37 home runs this season, which has him on pace to hit 58 for the season. The 31-year-old set his career-high last season when he slugged 54, so he’s ahead of his 2024 pace this season.
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