Shohei Ohtani extended his on-base streak Friday night in the series opener between the Texas Rangers and Los Angeles Dodgers by hitting a single in the fifth inning.
Ohtani has now reached base safely in 44 consecutive games. The on-base streak dates back to last season and is the longest such stretch of Ohtani’s career. It previously was a 36-game on-base streak from Sept. 11, 2022-April 15, 2023, while a member of the Los Angeles Angels.
Ohtani’s now holds the longest on-base streak in MLB history by a Japanese-born player, surpassing the 43 games Ichiro Suzuki reached safely during the 2009 season. In 2024, Ohtani joined Ichiro as just the second player from Japan with 100 home runs and 100 stolen bases in his career.
The two are not only connected through their heritage but also with Suzuki serving as a mentor and idol to Ohtani.
In terms of his on-base streak this season, Ohtani has hit safely in nine of 13 games. That’s come despite not yet feeling fully comfortable at the plate. To work through that, he recently took batting practice on the field at Dodger Stadium.
“It’s going in the right direction,” Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton at the end of the road trip. “Overall in my career, I think April has been OK. So I think it’s where it’s supposed to be.”
While Ohtani has managed to keep his on-base streak alive, he had a scoreless innings streak slip away on Wednesday. Although it was an unearned run allowed, that still snapped Ohtani’s streak as a pitcher at 24.2 scoreless innings.
The 31-year-old is in his first full season pitching since having a second career Tommy John surgery in September 2023. There’s some belief he is pursuing a Cy Young Award, which would be a first for a Japanese pitcher, but Ohtani has continued to state his focus is on remaining healthy and performing well for the Dodgers.
Shohei Ohtani bobblehead night
Ohtani broke a tie with Ichiro on the same night as his bobblehead giveaway at Dodger Stadium. Despite the Dodgers implementing a policy to distribute an Ohtani bobblehead to the first 54,000 ticketed fans — effectively guaranteeing a trinket for everyone — there were long lines outside the stadium several hours before first pitch.
Have you subscribed to the Dodger Blue YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows and giveaways, and stay up to date on all Dodgers news and rumors!
