Shohei Ohtani may not be able to pitch in his debut season for the Los Angeles Dodgers, but he is still contributing as much as possible at the plate and is still firmly in the MVP mix even as a designated hitter.
In last night’s 4-1 victory over the Colorado Rockies, Ohtani surpassed yet another big career milestone.
Ohtani went 1-for-3 with a walk last night and stole his 14th base of the season, which was the 100th steal of his MLB career.
Ohtani also got picked off second base and it was the first time he had gotten caught stealing all season.
So far, this has been the most prolific base-stealing season of Ohtani’s career, as he is 14-for-15 through 57 games and well on his way to surpassing his career high of 26 steals set in 2021.
The Dodgers have gotten back on track after their surprising 5-game losing streak last week and have now won four out of five games even though Ohtani and Mookie Betts have undergone a natural slight regression to the mean after scalding hot starts to the season.
Ohtani’s $700 million contract he got this offseason is already looking like a solid deal for the Dodgers and we haven’t seen him on the mound yet, as his bat is a legitimate game-changer.
The Dodgers are currently sitting with a comfortable 5.5-game lead in the NL West due to their prolific offense and stout pitching staff that is third in the majors with a 3.28 team ERA.
Ohtani could be quietly making a push for a 40-40 season, as if he hasn’t racked up enough accolades already in his brief career.
