Ohtani's 473-foot moonshot lands 'where people don't go'

LOS ANGELES -- In just four months with the Dodgers, Shohei Ohtani has already had his fair share of jaw-dropping homers. But he saved his most impressive for his 30th blast of the season as the Dodgers swept the three-game series against the Red Sox with a 9-6 win on Sunday at Dodger Stadium.

“He just never ceases to amaze,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. “I mean, you look at how far that ball went and how hot it came off the bat, it’s just hard to fathom someone hitting a baseball like that. He did say he got all of it. That’s just where people don’t go. Just really impressive.”

Red Sox right-hander Kutter Crawford left a 2-1 cutter over the middle of the plate in the fifth inning, and Ohtani made sure to make him pay. As soon as he made contact, there was no doubt it was going to be a homer. The only question was whether the ball would clear Dodger Stadium.

Ohtani just missed hitting it out of the park entirely, but it did completely clear the right-center pavilion, skipping all the way to the center-field plaza. The 473-foot blast is the second longest at Dodger Stadium in the Statcast era (since 2015), behind just Giancarlo Stanton’s 475-foot blast that cleared the entire stadium on May 12, 2015.

“That’s what I hope,” Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton, when asked if he wants to hit a ball out of Dodger Stadium at some point in his career. “I think I’m going to have a lot more opportunities to do so. So definitely looking forward to one of those.”

The Dodgers’ two-way superstar now has seven homers of 450-plus feet this season, the most by any player in the Majors, and three more than any other Dodger in a single season since '15. Ohtani is now the owner of three of the five longest homers at Dodger Stadium in the Statcast era.

Impressively enough, Sunday’s blast wasn’t the longest of the season for Ohtani. That came on June 18 at Coors Field, where he launched a 476-foot homer to straightaway center field.

“Nothing surprises me anymore with him,” said Dodgers second baseman Gavin Lux, who homered in back-to-back games for the first time in his career. “It sounded like a shotgun off his bat. He’s a special player. All around, all sides of the ball. I’m looking forward to seeing him pitch next year too. Yeah, he’s special.”

In a short period of time, the Dodgers have grown accustomed to watching Ohtani hitting moonshots. But as the camera panned to the Dodgers’ dugout, it was clear that it was one of the most impressive homers ever hit at Dodger Stadium. Only Willie Stargell has hit a ball out of Dodger Stadium as a left-handed batter.

During his in-game interview on ESPN, Clayton Kershaw, who has spent his entire 17-year career with the Dodgers, said he has never seen a ball hit where Ohtani’s landed. Most of the longest homers at Dodger Stadium have come from right-handed hitters. There have been a few Ohtani homers this season that have landed in uncharted territory.

“I was starting to sit down, thinking about the next inning, and then boom,” said Dodgers catcher Austin Barnes, who went back-to-back with Ohtani. “Shohei is unbelievable. I usually don’t miss any of his at-bats because it’s fun to watch. … He’s a freak. I’ve never seen someone like him.”

Ohtani has been even better than advertised in his first season with the Dodgers after signing a historic 10-year, $700 million deal this offseason. He leads the Dodgers in just about every major hitting category and has now hit at least 30 homers in four consecutive seasons.

He has already started to make his mark on Dodgers history. On Sunday, Ohtani became the first player in Major League history to record at least 50 extra-base hits, 75 runs, 50 walks and 20 stolen bases in his first 100 games with a team.

“I’m happy he’s wearing a Dodger uniform,” Roberts said. “For me, the main thing I see from Shohei is he’s really enjoying being a Dodger, enjoying his teammates, enjoying the fan base, and he’s having fun.”