Shohei Ohtani did it.
The Los Angeles Dodgers star achieved an unprecedented 50-50 season, 50 home runs and 50 steals in the same season – and he did it with a nine-game lead.
On Thursday, he did so in very Ohtani-like fashion, hitting two home runs and stealing two bases in a five-hit, seven-RBI game against the Miami Marlins.
With his 50 home runs, he breaks Shawn Green’s record from 2001 as the best in Dodgers history.
The final piece of the puzzle fell in the seventh inning on Thursday against Marlins relief pitcher Mike Baumann.
Ohtani reached the half-century mark in steals early in the first inning by stealing third base after opening the game with a double.
The star DH later scored a run to give Los Angeles an early 1-0 lead over Miami. He made his 51st steal of the second inning, reached base on an RBI single and took second base without throwing.
His 49th home run came in the sixth inning, and it was a big one. Statcast measured it at 111.2 mph and 438 feet, giving the Dodgers a 9-3 lead.
Considering Ohtani was ejected while attempting to turn a double into a triple in the third, he was just seconds away from getting a cycle.
Thursday was also Ohtani’s 13th game of the season with at least one home run and steal, which puts him on par with Rickey Henderson in 1986, who, according to Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic.
Shohei Ohtani has already made a lot of history with the Dodgers
In addition to his 50-50 season, Ohtani has done enough to make his first season with the Dodgers memorable.
Ohtani has broken new ground when it comes to reaching specific home run and stolen base numbers. In August, he became the sixth player ever to reach 40-40 – joining Jose Canseco, Barry Bonds, Alex Rodríguez, Alfonso Soriano and Ronald Acuña Jr. – and did so in record time. The earliest player to reach both thresholds was Soriano on September 16, 2006.
And Ohtani’s 40th home run was something special: a walk-off grand slam.
Rodriguez previously held the record for most home runs in both categories, with 42 home runs and 46 stolen bases in 1998. Ohtani matched that 42-42 season record on his bobblehead night on August 28 and surpassed it two days later on August 30.
Ohtani’s current home run count surpasses his previous career high of 46, set in 2021, his first MVP year, and he has already surpassed his previous record for steals (26, also in 2021). He currently leads the NL in home runs and trails only Elly De La Cruz in steals.
And of course, Ohtani set records in both contract size ($700 million) and deferred contract payments ($680 million) when he signed with the Dodgers before this season.
Ohtani has built his career on unprecedented accomplishments, and even in a season where he won’t be able to pitch due to UCL surgery in late 2023, he’s still doing things the MLB has never seen.
