As expected, monsters are monsters. Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers set a new record despite it being his first postseason since entering the Major League.
Ohtani started the third game of the 2024 Major League Postseason New York Mets and the National League Championship Series (NLCS) at Citi Field in Flushing, New York, USA on the 17th (Korea time) and led the team to an 8-0 complete victory with one hit (one home run), three RBIs, one run and one walk from four times at bat.
Due to the aftermath of last year’s elbow surgery, Ohtani focused on batting this year and achieved impressive performance of 54 home runs and 59 steals, which no one else in the world had achieved. However, his performance in the postseason clearly lagged behind that of the regular season. After hitting his first home run in the division series against the San Diego Padres on Sunday, he only had six hits, one home run, five RBIs and a batting average of 0.222 OPS of 0.677 before the game on Sunday.
However, Ohtani’s presence was clear compared to his batting average. The reason is that he showed very strong performance when there was a runner. At the end of Game 2 of the Championship Series on the 15th, Ohtani was struggling with no hit in 19 at-bats when there was no runner. On the other hand, Ohtani swung his bat with six hits in eight at-bats in the situation of a runner-up. In other words, he was only disappointed in his role as the first batter, the “table setter.” And this trend continued into the game on the 17th. 먹튀검증
In his first at-bat in the top of the first inning, Ohtani grounded out to first base off Mets starter Luis Severino. He got a walk in his second at-bat as a leadoff hitter once again in the top of the third inning, but he also failed to show off his presence by staying in the fly ball to right field in his third at-bat as a leadoff hitter in the top of the fifth inning. In addition, he was struck out by a changed pitcher Reed Garrett in the top of the sixth inning without a runner with two outs, who managed to run to 4-0 based on a home run by Kike Hernandez.
However, Ohtani displayed an explosive presence as a runner was present. Ohtani came to the batter’s box in the top of the eighth inning with one out and runners on the first and second bases made by Will Smith’s walk and Kieke Hernandez’s hit, and watched the first pitch of Tyler Megill, the Mets’ new pitcher, before reaching out his bat without hesitation to the 89-mile (143.2 kilometer) cutter on the lower course toward the strike zone on the second pitch. And as soon as he left the bat, he felt that the hit was a home run.
Ohtani’s 37-degree shooting angle extended at a whopping 115.9 miles (about 186.5 kilometers) and led to a three-run home run that flew 397 feet (about 121 meters) and landed on the third floor of the stands behind the right field at Citi Field. With this home run, the Dodgers effectively won the game, and Max Muncy’s solo home run in the top of the ninth inning made it 8-0 to win Game 3 and have only two wins left to advance to the World Series (WS).
In the meantime, Ohtani’s homerun became the first in the Major League. “According to Statcast’s batting tracking, it is Ohtani’s moonshot homerun that crosses the foul pole of the city field,” said David Adler of Statcast, the official recording site of the Major League. “Since Statcast was introduced, it is the only homerun that recorded 115 miles (about 185.1 kilometers) or higher with the highest firing angle (37 degrees) in the postseason.” He was the first to achieve this feat even in the postseason, not in the regular season.
How did Ohtani see his home run? According to Japan’s Nikkan Sports, Ohtani said, “When I hit… “I liked it,” he said. “I didn’t think I would just go in because the ball went up high. When the foul pole passed, it was quite inside. I thought it was a home run. It was the first game of three consecutive games in New York, so it was a good situation to score a few points, but in that sense, it was a good home run.”
“Based on the home run, Ohtani had no hits in 22 at-bats when there were no runners, and seven hits in 9 at-bats when there were runners,” Ohtani said. “I think it would be nice if I could hit well depending on the situation. I only got one walk today before the home run. If I get more on base and create a good situation even when there are no runners at bat, I will have more games to win,” he said.
Ohtani added, “In the post season, top-class players from opposing teams also come out. That’s how difficult it is to make a hit or a home run. Since this is my first post season, I am fighting with the mindset of ‘Let’s do what I can,'” Ohtani added. “Since my sense itself is not bad, I will continue to make good points rather than change it significantly.”
