Shohei Ohtani joins exclusive 40-40 club with epic walk-off grand slam
Shohei Ohtani, who |A|
has always had a |B|
flair for the dramatic, |C|
turned his home run |D|
Friday night into a |E|
Hollywood script, making sure |F|
it will be remembered |G|
forever in Los Angeles |H|
Dodgers history. Ohtani joined |J|
the prestigious 40-40 club |K|
by hitting a two-out, |L|
walk-off grand slam in |M|
the ninth inning, his |O|
40th homer of the |P|
season after stealing his |Q|
40th base in the |R|
fourth inning. He became |S|
only the sixth player |U|
in history to hit |V|
40 home runs and |Y|
steal 40 bases in |Z|
the same season, and |A|
was the quickest to |B|
accomplish the feat. “Forty-forty, |C|
same game, walk-off grand |D|
slam, Dodgers manager Dave |E|
Roberts said after the |F|
game. “I always say |G|
you cant script a |H|
game. But, man, if |J|
there was a script, |K|
that couldnt have been |L|
written any better. “Shohei |M|
just never ceases to |O|
amaze. It indeed was |P|
a scene right out |Q|
of Hollywood with the |R|
crowd screaming and his |S|
teammates celebrating with him |U|
at home plate at |V|
Dodger Stadium after Ohtani |Y|
broke a 3-3 tie |Z|
with the Tampa Bay |A|
Rays, giving the Dodgers |B|
a 7-3 victory. All |C|
things Dodgers: Latest Los |D|
Angeles Dodgers news, schedule, |E|
roster, stats, injury updates |F|
and more. “It was |G|
one of my most |H|
memorable moments, hopefully I |J|
can make more memorable |K|
moments, Ohtani told reporters |L|
after the game. “Im |M|
extremely honored Im part |O|
of this history. …. |P|
It means a tremendous |Q|
amount me doing it |R|
in front of the |S|
home crowd. Ohtani, the |U|
favorite to win his |V|
third MVP award, says |Y|
that while he was |Z|
thrilled to join the |A|
prestigious 40-40 club, the |B|
feat meant much more |C|
to him knowing it |D|
was the game-winning hit. |E|
Ohtani joins |H| Ronald Acuna Jr. (41 |J| homers, 73 stolen bases), |K| Alfonso Soriano (46 homers, |L| 41 stolen bases), Alex |M| Rodriguez (42 homers, 46 |O| stolen bases), Barry Bonds |P| (42 homers, 40 stolen |Q| bases) and Jose Canseco |R| (42 homers, 40 stolen |S| bases) in the prestigious |U| 40-40 club.
He accomplished |V| the feat in just |Y| his 126th game, breaking |Z| the previous record of |A| 147 games set by |B| Soriano in 2006.
“I |C| do think 40-40 is |D| something that was on |E| his radar from spring |F| training,” Roberts said recently. |G| “He wants to be |H| the greatest player to |J| ever play the game, |K| and when you do |L| something like that, youre |M| certainly staking your claim.
|O| dir="ltr">Ohtani, whos recovering from |P| Tommy John surgery and |Q| limited only to DH |R| duties, is showing the |S| baseball world just what |U| he can do as |V| a full-time hitter. Only |Y| four other players have |Z| hit at least 35 |A| homers this season, and |B| of that group only |C| New York Yankees star |D| Aaron Judge has stolen |E| more than five bases. |F| There are only seven |G| players in the majors |H| with at least 20 |J| homers and 20 steals |K| this season.
Ohtanis speed |L| has set him apart |M| from the pack in |O| what has become the |P| greatest all-around season by |Q| a DH in history. |R| His stolen base total |S| is almost double the |U| most by any DH |V| ever (22 by Gary |Y| Sheffield in 2007) and |Z| the most in Ohtanis |A| career, surpassing the 26 |B| he had in 2021.
|C| dir="ltr">He could also become |D| the first player in |E| history to hit at |F| least 45 homers and |G| steal 45 bases in |H| the same season. And |J| who knows? Ohtani could |K| even become the charter |L| member of the 50-50 |M| club.
“I think he |O| has bought into stealing |P| bases, understands the value |Q| of the stolen base, |R| getting 90 feet,” Roberts |S| said. “Hasnt surprised me. |U| I think its welcome |V| for me, for him, |Y| because hes in a |Z| pennant race now. And |A| I dont think hes |B| been in a pennant |C| race in his big-league |D| career. So, his enhanced |E| focus is not a |F| surprise to me.”
Ohtani |G| certainly is producing one |H| of the greatest all-around |J| offensive seasons in Dodgers |K| history, ranking in the |L| top five in the |M| National League in homers, |O| extra-base hits, total bases, |P| runs, walks and stolen |Q| bases.
You name it, |R| hes doing it.
“Hes |S| trying to dominate on |U| every margin,” Roberts said. |V| “Thats what makes him |Y| great.”
Ohtani, who was |Z| flirting with the Triple |A| Crown until recently, has |B| struggled in August, hitting |C| .198. Still, he has |D| eight homers and 12 |E| stolen bases this month.
|F| dir="ltr">Even with his August |G| swoon, hes heavily favored |H| to win his third |J| MVP award. He would |K| become just the second |L| player to win the |M| MVP in each league |O| (Hall of Famer Frank |P| Robinson is the only |Q| man to do it).
|R| dir="ltr">Yet, most important to |S| Ohtani, he says, is |U| that coveted World Series |V| trophy.
“The number one |Y| goal is to get |Z| to the postseason, Ohtani |A| said, “and win the |B| World Series.
He got |C| a taste of that |D| feeling in 2022 when |E| Japan won the World |F| Baseball Classic, but to |G| win the Dodgers first |H| World Series in a |J| full season since 1988 |K| — in his first |L| year with the club |M| — would mean absolutely |O| everything to him.
“Thats |P| why I play the |Q| game, Ohtani said this |R| spring.
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