Read the full story on SportsLook - MLB Notes: Shohei Ohtani on Pace to Shatter Career-High Total in Stolen Bases
Shohei Ohtani is celebrated for his prolific home run-hitting skills, with 187 round-trippers in 767 MLB career games.
He's also an excellent baserunner. Ohtani swiped his 15th base of the 2024 season on Tuesday, June 11. In the same game, he also belted his 16th homer, a two-run blast in the sixth inning, as the Los Angeles Dodgers routed the reigning World Series champion Texas Rangers 15-2. It was his first homer since June 5.
Ohtani wasted no time in reminding the Rangers that he's a running threat on the basepaths. He walked in the first inning and stole second base. Moments later, teammate Will Smith clubbed a three-run homer to make it 3-0 at Dodger Stadium.
In 2021, Ohtani had a career-high 26 stolen bases for the Los Angeles Angels in 155 games. He was also caught stealing 10 times.
This season, Ohtani is well on pace to surpass that stolen base total. He picked up his 15th stolen base in his 65th game on Tuesday.
Ohtani is also enjoying more consistent success on the basepaths in 2024 than he did in 2021. Exhibit A: He's only been thrown out once trying to steal this season.
Shohei Ohtani Reaches Milestone
On June 1, in a game against the Colorado Rockies, Shohei Ohtani became the second Japanese player to have 100 homers and 100 stolen bases in MLB, joining Ichiro Suzuki (117 homers, 509 steals).
Through June 11, Ohtani is batting .312 with 16 homers and 43 RBIs. He's also scored a National League-best 50 runs for the Dodgers (42-26), who are in first place in the NL West.
Continue reading the full story on SportsLook.
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Author: Ed Odeven
Find Ed on JAPAN Forward's dedicated website, SportsLook. Follow his [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.
