MIAMI – The Veuve Clicquot had been poured and the commemorative T-shirts handed out. Solely then, as soon as there had been time for all of it to sink in, may his awestruck teammates totally comprehend the newest demonstration of greatness by Shohei Ohtani.
They marveled not solely at his newest milestone, changing into the primary participant to hit 50 homers and steal 50 bases in the identical season. However they spoke with admiration about the best way Ohtani reached the 50-50 membership — with a single-game efficiency for the ages.
“That must be the best baseball sport of all time,” Gavin Lux mentioned. “It must be.”
Ohtani singlehandedly pummeled the Miami Marlins on Thursday. He went 6-for-6, slugged three residence runs, drove in 10 runs and swiped two bases — in a sport that clinched a postseason berth.
“I didn’t even understand he was 6-for-6,” Mookie Betts mentioned. “What we see is like anticipated. It’s loopy that he lives as much as these varieties of expectations. However that’s additionally what makes you speechless.”
And had Ohtani not gotten thrown out making an attempt to leg out a triple in his third at-bat, he’d have added his second profession cycle, too.
No participant in baseball historical past had hit three homers and stolen a number of bases in a sport, till Ohtani did it on Thursday. No participant had collected extra whole bases (17) in a multi-steal sport, smashing the earlier mark of 11 from the likes of Kirk Gibson and Braggo Roth. No participant since at the least 1901 had collected at the least 5 hits, hit a number of residence runs and stolen a number of bases in the identical sport.
Based on OptaSTATS, no participant since 1920 has ever had a 10-RBI day, a six-hit day, a 5 extra-base hit day, a three-homer day, and a multi-steal day inside their profession. Ohtani crammed all that manufacturing right into a single Thursday afternoon throughout a 20-4 thrashing of the Marlins.
Since RBI turned official in 1920, just one MLB participant has had, over the course of his complete profession (similar sport or not),
a sport with 10+ RBI
a sport with 6+ hits
a sport with 5+ XBH
a sport with 3+ HR
a sport with 2+ SBThat one participant is Shohei Ohtani. He did all of it immediately. pic.twitter.com/njXOmwHKnm
— OptaSTATS (@OptaSTATS) September 20, 2024
So, how did Ohtani’s masterclass rank with the opposite biggest particular person offensive performances of all-time? With so many worthy contenders, it would depend upon the parameters.
Finest 6-for-6 days ever?
Few can converse with extra authority on this topic than Dodgers supervisor Dave Roberts. On Could 23, 2002, in a sport towards the Milwaukee Brewers, Roberts watched from the Dodgers dugout as teammate Shawn Inexperienced slugged 4 residence runs, a part of a 6-for-6 day.
“Sorry, Shawn,” Roberts mentioned after Ohtani’s outburst, once more from the Dodgers dugout. “However simply in totality I don’t know that I’ve seen something like this.”
Inexperienced’s 19 whole bases stay an all-time single-game document. Anthony Rendon (April 30, 2017), Edgardo Alfonso (Aug. 30, 1999), Jimmie Foxx (July 10, 1932) and Ty Cobb (Could 5, 1925) all loved 6-for-6 video games – although with fewer whole bases than each Inexperienced and Ohtani.
Shawn Inexperienced blasts his fourth residence run on Could 23, 2002. (Tannen Maury/AFP through Getty Pictures)
What about by RBIs?
Whereas Ohtani’s 10 RBIs towards the Marlins have been spectacular, a number of different gamers have him beat by this measure. Although not by a lot.
Mark Whiten hit 4 residence runs and drove in 12 on Sept. 7, 1993. It’s one in all 4 video games ever with greater than 10 RBIs from one participant, matching Jim Bottomley’s 6-for-6, 12-RBI sport from Sept. 16, 1924. The one different gamers who drove in additional runs (11) in a sport than Ohtani did on Thursday are Phil Weintraub (April 30, 1944) and Tony Lazerri (Could 24, 1936).
In fact, Ohtani has that group bested in a method. None of these video games featured a number of stolen bases.
Mark Whiten in 1993. (George Gojkovich / Getty Pictures)
Finest sport ever by a delegated hitter?
This title, far and away, belongs to Ohtani. Because the American League launched the DH in 1973, solely two gamers have collected six hits whereas occupying that spot. The primary was Kevin Reimer on Aug. 24, 1993 towards Oakland. The second was Ohtani. Regardless of a job description that requires whole give attention to offense, no DH had ever logged double-digit runs batted in or collected greater than 15 whole bases in a sport.
“Take the season out of it – immediately was in all probability the only finest offensive sport I’ve ever seen,” Max Muncy mentioned.
What about all-around video games?
If particular person dominance is the measure, a number of pitching performances may rise to the extent of finest sport ever. Suppose Kerry Wooden’s 20-strikeout sport, Sandy Koufax’s 14-strikeout good sport, or Max Scherzer’s 17-strikeout no-hitter.
Jim Tobin as soon as threw a whole sport on the mound whereas hitting three residence runs on the plate (although he did enable 5 runs that day). Rick Sensible threw a no-hitter on June 23, 1971 – and slugged two residence runs himself.
In fact, Ohtani is aware of one thing about dominant two-way performances. In a June 27, 2023 begin towards the White Sox, he struck out 10 whereas permitting one run in 6 ⅓ innings, all whereas smacking two residence runs and going 3-for-4 on the plate.
However even that efficiency may pale compared to what Ohtani authored throughout Thursday’s show of dominance.
“I’ve by no means seen anyone do this even in little leagues,” Lux mentioned. “So it’s loopy that he’s doing that on the highest stage.”
(High photograph of Shohei Ohtani ripping a double: Chris Arjoon / Getty Pictures)
