Shohei Ohtani’s 175th home run in the majors was not only a milestone, it was record-tying.
Ohtani on Friday equaled Hideki Matsui for the most homers by a Japanese-born player with a solo shot during the first inning of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ game against the San Diego Padres.
“I’m happy personally. It’s an honor to be on the same page as him,” Ohtani said through an interpreter after the Dodgers’ 8-7 loss in 11 innings. “He’s known as a power hitter, left-handed hitter like me. It’s just an honor to be able to be associated with somebody like that.”
Photo: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY
Ohtani drove an elevated outside fastball from Michael King 403 feet into the center-field stands with one out, for his fourth homer of the season.
On Friday afternoon, a federal judge in Los Angeles ordered Ippei Mizuhara, Ohtani’s former longtime interpreter, to undergo gambling addiction treatment in a sports betting case stemming from allegations he stole US$16 million from Ohtani’s bank account to pay off debts.
In a group interview with reporters after the game, Ohtani did not take questions about the investigation.
“We’re talking about baseball,” a Dodgers public relations staff member said.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said before the game that Ohtani has handled the situation “with flying colors. He’s done a great job of just focusing on playing baseball and not letting it be a distraction for him.”
Ohtani went 3 for 5 in the 8-7 loss to the Padres in 11 innings. He is batting .457 (16-for-35) during his eight-game hitting streak, including four homers, 12 extra-base hits and seven RBIs.
“He really seemed tonight just like he always has each day, and it’s a credit to him. He’s really unflappable,” Roberts said after the game.
Matsui played 10 seasons in the majors from 2003-2012.
“Mr Matsui was a star player when I was a kid and then Shohei-san tied those numbers, it’s an amazing thing,” Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto said.
Ichiro Suzuki is the only other Japanese-born player to reach the century mark in home runs with 117.
“Obviously, it’s a big deal in the Japanese baseball industry as well. So I’m going to look forward to the next one,” Ohtani said.
Taiwan kept their hopes of advancing to next year’s World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Saturday, backed by solid pitching. Taiwan last night played against Nicaragua. As of press time, Nicaragua was leading 6-0. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan on Saturday kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen struck out one and allowed no hits, except for a hit-by-pitch over
Taiwan kept its hopes of advancing to the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome last night, backed by solid pitching. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The win was crucial for Taiwan, as a loss would have eliminated the team from contention for the next WBC. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen (沙子宸) struck out one and allowed no hits, except for
Team Taiwan are set to face Spain in a win-or-go-home match tonight for the final berth at the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), despite losing to Nicaragua 6-0 in the WBC qualifier at the Taipei Dome on Sunday. The home team’s loss on Sunday means Nicaragua finish first in the qualifier round in Taipei with a perfect 3-0 record and advances to next year’s finals. After crushing South Africa 9-1 earlier on Sunday, Spain took second place in the four-team qualifier with a 2-1 record. With a 1-2 record, Taiwan finished third while South Africa placed at the bottom with
Team Taiwan avoided missing the World Baseball Classic (WBC) for the first time by defeating Spain 6-3 in a do-or-die game in Taipei last night. After narrowly escaping a mercy-rule loss to Spain in the WBC Qualifiers opener on Friday last week, the home team — winner of last year's WBSC Premier12 title three months ago — got their revenge against the 2023 European champions at Taipei Dome. "It felt quite different from when we won the Premier12," Taiwan captain Chen Chieh-hsien (陳傑憲) said after the game, recalling the ups and downs the team has experienced over the past few days. Unlike in
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