LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani hit a go-ahead two-run homer for the 1,000th hit of his MLB career, and he also struck out a season-high eight batters in four innings Wednesday in the longest outing on the mound so far this season for the Los Angeles Dodgers two-way superstar.
The 31-year-old right-hander made his eighth mound start of the season after not pitching in 2024 while recovering from elbow surgery. The reigning National League MVP closed his outing against the St. Louis Cardinals by striking out the side in the fourth and walked off wiping his face on a 90-degree day at Dodger Stadium. Masyn Winn tossed his bat in frustration after going down swinging against the eighth-year MLB player from Japan.
“I thought it was a big day for me personally getting to the fourth inning. That was really good in terms of building up,” Ohtani said through a translator.
Ohtani threw 54 pitches, including 37 for strikes, and gave up one run and two hits. The Dodgers lost 5-3.
Ohtani’s 39th homer snapped a nine-game drought without going deep and traveled 440 feet to center field, scoring Alex Call, who doubled leading off in the bottom of the third, to give the Dodgers a 2-1 lead. In the first inning, Ohtani swung at the first pitch and reached when first baseman Alec Burleson booted the ball for an error.