It seems like it’s never a matter of if, but what inning.
On Wednesday afternoon, that inning was the bottom of the first with one out in front of a Dodger Stadium crowd of 40,094.
That’s when 31-year-old Dodgers international superstar Shohei Ohtani launched a 79-mph curveball from 29-year-old Minnesota Twins right-hander Chris Paddack 441 feet into the Left Field Pavilion on the sixth pitch of the game to give the (now) 60-43 NL West first-place Dodgers an early 1-0 lead in their eventual 4-3 win over the (now) 49-53 AL Central fourth-place Minnesota Twins. It was Ohtani’s fifth home run in as many games.
(SportsNet LA)
“He’s got five-in-a-row now, so, five homers in-a-row, games in-a-row, which is pretty impressive,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said postgame of our generation’s Babe Ruth. “(He) continues to use the whole field, the big part of the field, and hit breaking balls, hit fastballs, and so that’s been really good. And yeah, Shohei comes up with a chance to win the game, and so you gotta take your chances with their closer against Esteury (Ruiz), and fortunately Esteury puts together a good at-bat to get Freddie (Freeman) up there,” Roberts added.
Fortunately indeed.
On the fifth pitch to Freeman from 30-year-old Twins right-handed reliever Griffin Jax with two outs in the bottom of the ninth and the Dodgers down 3-2, Jax threw a 96.4-mph fastball right in Freddie’s wheelhouse that popular Dodgers first baseman lined to left, scoring Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts from third and Babe Ohtani from second for the 4-3 Dodgers walk-off win.
(SportsNet LA)
(SportsNet LA)
Fortunately, indeed.
Play Ball!
* * * * * *