Shohei Ohtani gave the Los Angeles Dodgers an early lead on Tuesday night when he slugged a leadoff home run against Michael Lorenzen.
Although the Dodgers lost to the Colorado Rockies after blowing a late lead, Ohtani made more MLB history with his long ball.
The 409-foot shot to center field was Ohtani’s 20th homer of the year and the 300th of his MLB career.
By hitting his 300th home run, Ohtani became the first player in MLB history to hit 300 home runs and steal 100 bases in the same season, according to ESPN Insights.
Shohei Ohtani is the first player in MLB history with 300 HR and 100 stolen bases within his first 9 MLB seasons 🔥 pic.twitter.com/loI24gI8c7
— ESPN Insights (@ESPNInsights) July 8, 2026
“It was quite the homer,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “It was 119 (mph) off the bat, low launch angle. I mean, it was squared up. Got out in a hurry for 300. He got there pretty quickly for us. Man, I just marvel at him every day. So 300 is a big number.”
Ohtani is one of 18 active players to hit the 300-mark, and he joins his teammate, Mookie Betts, who hit 300 on June 24.
The 32-year-old also became the first Japanese-born player to join the 300 home run club. He previously passed Hideki Matsui for the all-time home run lead by Japanese-born players in 2024.
Ohtani also became the fifth-fastest player in MLB history to join the 300-club, needing just 1,102 games — not including any he only appeared as a pitcher, according to Sarah Langs of MLB.com.
“We’re always talking about the 500 club, and so for him to get to 300, I still think, given some of the time that he’s missed with the surgeries, it’s been pretty dang quick for me,” Roberts said.
Also by reaching 300 home runs, Ohtani passed Babe Ruth on the all-time pitcher strikeouts list by a player who also hit 300 home runs, according to Langs.
Ohtani has 765 strikeouts and 300 homers in his career, while Ruth struck out 501 along with hitting 714 home runs. No other player with at least 300 home runs has struck out more than 11 hitters.
Shohei Ohtani home run breakdown
Ohtani slugged 171 of his home runs over six seasons and 701 games with the Los Angeles Angels, but has increased his output with the Dodgers. Across his 401 games with the Dodgers, Ohtani has slugged 129 already, which includes reaching the 50-mark in his first two seasons in L.A.
Ohtani’s career-high came last season, when he slugged 55 home runs, breaking his previous record of 54, set in 2024. Before joining the Dodgers, Ohtani’s most in a season came in 2021 when he hit 46 for the Angels.
While playing in Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan, Ohtani slugged 48 long balls. In the World Baseball Classic, he has hit four more, giving him a total of 352 professional home runs.
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