NEW YORK — Turns out, Shohei Ohtani can hit with the bases empty, too.
The Los Angeles Dodgers leadoff hitter opened Game 4 for the NLCS with a home run to right-center field, giving the Dodgers an early lead over the New York Mets. It was Ohtani’s third home run of the postseason, but his first playoff hit with the bases empty.
It’s been part of a puzzling disparity for Ohtani, who woke up Thursday morning having gone 7-for-9 with runners on in October. Without anyone on base, he was hitless in 22 at-bats.
That stretch is now over. Ohtani walloped a center-cut sinker from Mets left-hander Jose Quintana to lead off the night, lacing a ball into the home bullpen for the seventh leadoff home run in Dodgers postseason history.
The metrics underscored the annihilation. The ball left Ohtani’s bat at a projected 117.8 mph, traveling an estimated 422 feet and eliciting another animated reaction from the Japanese superstar. According to MLB statistician Sarah Langs, it was the third hardest-hit postseason homer of the Statcast era (since 2015), behind only Kyle Schwarber (119.7 mph in the 2022 NLCS) and Giancarlo Stanton (118.3 mph in the 2020 ALDS).
SHOHEI OHTANI LEADOFF TANK
WELCOME TO #NLCS GAME 4 pic.twitter.com/LrUwXWpqMo
— MLB (@MLB) October 18, 2024
The big hit with no one on base quieted what had emerged as a talking point this October, small sample-size be damned.
“I have no idea why people are talking about Shohei,” Mookie Betts said after Ohtani launched a three-run home run in the Dodgers’ Game 3 win. “He’s the best player on the field every day. ‘Oh, he hasn’t got a hit with nobody on.’ Who cares? It’s Shohei Ohtani. Everybody knows who he is every time he steps in the box. Everybody is expecting something to happen.”
Something did on Thursday night.
Shohei Ohtani absolutely punished this baseball 😳 #NLCS pic.twitter.com/0iX4xv4DHb
— MLB (@MLB) October 18, 2024
“I don’t think there’s a hitter that says, when runners are in scoring position, that they’re not more focused,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said before the game. “So, I think that is a part of it. But I still like him in any spot. But I think there’s a little bit of a focus part of it.”
Ohtani had no such issues in the regular season when his numbers were nearly identical in either situation. With the bases empty, Ohtani hit .311 with a 1.036 OPS. With runners on, he hit .308 with — again — a 1.036 OPS. He actually slugged a little more with the bases empty, and 32 of his NL-leading 54 home runs were hit with no one on base.
“I think he’s performing well,” Roberts said. “I’m excited for him. I think the moment isn’t too big. I think that you’ve seen other superstars in years past, their first postseason, you could see them trying too hard. I don’t see that with Shohei.”
(Photo of Shohei Ohtani: Al Bello / Getty Images)
