Oakland Athletics second baseman Darell Hernaiz (2) fails to catch a pitch from catcher Shea Langeliers as Los Angeles Dodgers forward Shohei Ohtani (17) steals second base during the ninth inning of a baseball game on Saturday, August 3, 2024, in Oakland, California.
13:06 JST, August 4, 2024
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani’s debut season with the Los Angeles Dodgers put him in rare company.
Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani hits his 30th home run during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Sunday, July 21, 2024, in Los Angeles.
The Japanese star stole three bases against the Oakland Athletics on Saturday night, giving him 31 steals this season, plus 33 home runs.
This is only the fourth time in Dodgers history that a player has joined the 30-30 club. Matt Kemp did so in 2011 and Raul Mondesi in 1997 and 1999.
This is the first time in his career that Ohtani has accomplished this feat. His previous record for steals was set in 2021, when he had 26 and hit 46 home runs for the Angels.
Ohtani accomplished the goal when he stole second base in the ninth inning and scored another single later in the inning with a double steal.
Ohtani shares the fourth spot on the list of fastest players to reach the mark in a single season, along with Jose Canseco who also did it in the 111th game of the season for Oakland in 1988. Bobby Bonds did it in the 110th game in 1973, Alex Rodriguez in the 107th game in 1998 and Eric Davis in the 105th game in 1987.
