Shohei Ohtani tracker: Dodgers star reaches 48 HRs, 49 SBs in quest for 50-50 season
Shohei Ohtani is two homers and one stolen base away from history, with 10 games to go.
The Los Angeles Dodgers star continued his campaign to post MLB's first 50-50 season with a stolen base against the Miami Marlins on Wednesday, his 49th of the season. It came about as early as possible, as Ohtani began the game with a single, then took second base on the first pitch to Mookie Betts.
Marlins catcher Nick Fortes' throw arrived in time to get Ohtani, but it was off-target and bobbled, allowing Ohtani to take third on an error.
Ohtani didn't score from third, though, as he was thrown out at home on a fielder's choice off the bat of Teoscar Hernández. That ended up being the first threat of an 8-4 Dodgers win, in which Ohtani went 1-for-5.
The steal came a day after Ohtani hit his 48th homer of the season against the Marlins. The long ball moved him just one short of tying the Dodgers' single-season record, currently held by Shawn Green with 49 in 2001.
Is Shohei Ohtani on pace for 50-50?
Yes. With 48 home runs, 49 stolen bases and 10 games left on the Dodgers' regular-season schedule, Ohtani is on pace for 51 homers and 52 steals by the end of the regular season.
Ohtani would need to go four consecutive games without a home run to fall below a 50-homer pace.
The Dodgers' remaining schedule consists of a homestand against the Colorado Rockies and San Diego Padres, followed by a season-ending trip to the offense-friendly confines of Coors Field.
Shohei Ohtani has already made plenty of history with Dodgers
However his quest for a 50-50 season works out, Ohtani has done enough to make his first season with the Dodgers worth remembering.
As far as reaching certain numbers in home runs and stolen bases goes, Ohtani has journeyed deep into uncharted territory. In August, he became the sixth player to ever reach 40-40 — joining Jose Canseco, Barry Bonds, Alex Rodríguez, Alfonso Soriano and Ronald Acuña Jr. — and he did so in record time. The earliest any of those players had reached both thresholds was Soriano on Sept. 16, 2006.
And Ohtani's 40th homer was a special one: a walk-off grand slam.
Rodriguez previously held the record for most in both categories, with 42 homers and 46 stolen bases in 1998. Ohtani matched that 42-42 season on his bobblehead night on Aug. 28 and surpassed it two days later on Aug. 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 shattered his previous best in steals (26, also in 2021). He currently leads the NL in homers and ranks behind only Elly De La Cruz in steals.
And, of course, Ohtani set records for both size of contract ($700 million) and deferred contract money ($680 million) when he signed with the Dodgers before this season.
Ohtani has built his career on being unprecedented. Even in a season in which he isn't able to pitch, having undergone UCL surgery at the end of 2023, he is still doing things MLB has never seen.
