'Storybook' Shohei hits NL-leading 27th HR to spark comeback

LOS ANGELES -- Shohei Ohtani had a busy pregame on Tuesday. About three hours before the game, the superstar -- alongside teammate Yoshinobu Yamamoto and manager Dave Roberts -- signed a bat that will be showcased in the Baseball Hall of Fame’s new exhibit that recognizes Japanese baseball in America.

That all took place just an hour before the Dodgers began their annual Japanese Heritage Night at Dodger Stadium. Once the game got going, Ohtani immediately showed off his brilliance, sparking a late comeback with a go-ahead two-run homer -- his NL-leading 27th -- in the seventh inning of the Dodgers’ 6-5 walk-off win over the D-backs.

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"It’s one of those things, Shohei is very storybook,” Roberts said. “It seems like whenever there’s anticipation for something to happen, it happens. And guys like that are like Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods. Just look back at the [World Baseball Classic], him versus [Mike] Trout, that one where he was pitching. And then on Japanese Heritage [Night], obviously you’ve got so many people from Japan here. And then he comes up huge.”

Two at-bats before sending the home crowd into a frenzy, Ohtani fouled a ball off his right foot, howled in pain and was down for a few seconds. As Roberts and a member of the Dodgers' training staff checked on him, there was an understandable concern felt throughout the ballpark.

But not only did Ohtani stay in the game after jogging it out, but he delivered one of his most memorable moments in a Dodgers uniform in his first season in Los Angeles. Ohtani’s homer, which came on a 1-0 slider at the top of the zone from right-hander Justin Martinez, traveled a Statcast-projected 433 feet and had an exit velocity of 112 mph.

As soon as Ohtani made contact, Arizona right fielder Corbin Carroll took two courtesy jogs back toward the right-field wall before coming to a complete stop. In the batter’s box, Ohtani took a few seconds to admire his work before finishing it off with a mild bat flip as he trotted around the bases.

"The slider up and in and he was able to do what he did with it, I don't understand how he was able to do that,” said Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman. “It’s just amazing to watch."

It’s hard to imagine another player in baseball that gets a bigger crowd reaction to a fly ball than Ohtani. The anticipation for him to hit a towering homer is felt every game, regardless if it’s at Dodger Stadium or on the road.

Given he’s one of the biggest stars of the game, there was a lot of speculation on whether Ohtani would consider participating in this year’s T-Mobile Home Run Derby. As recently as a few weeks ago, Ohtani didn’t close the door, but noted that he still needed to have conversations with the Dodgers and the doctors.

After those conversations, it appears Ohtani is opting to not participate in the second Derby of his career, following his memorable performance in 2021 at Coors Field with the Angels. Ohtani made this announcement postgame Tuesday, citing his ongoing rehab from a second major right elbow surgery last season that he suffered as a pitcher. Right now, only Baltimore’s Gunnar Henderson has committed to participate in the event, scheduled for July 15 at Globe Life Park in Arlington.

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"There’s been some conversations going on,” Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton. “I’m in the middle of my rehab progression, so it’s not going to look like I’ll be participating."

While Ohtani had sincere interest in participating in the event, Roberts said the decision was made by all parties.

"The reason he came to the Dodgers was to win a championship,” Roberts said. “And it’s not solely his responsibility to carry Major League Baseball. So he is a guy that is very in-tune with his responsibility. … But he is going through rehab, and his job, he signed up to play for the Dodgers and to take care of himself the best way he can.

"So I think in any other normal situation, where he wasn’t rehabbing, I think he would love to participate. But then you layer on something that is so unique to anyone, the volume of swings, the intensity of it, would just be a real disappointment for not only Shohei, the Dodgers, and also the fans, if something were to happen during something like that.”