CLEVELAND — Among his many skills, Shohei Ohtani must be a world-class compartmentalizer.
As his pitching rehab reaches its final stages and the baseball world speculates on his return to two-way player status – when will he pitch, should he pitch, how will he pitch – Ohtani himself must be looking forward to that day.
In the meantime, he bides his time smashing baseballs into seats.
He became the first player in the majors to 20 home runs this season, sending a two-run drive the opposite way over the high wall in left field at Progressive Field and helping the Dodgers to a 9-5 victory over the Cleveland Indians on Tuesday night.
Ohtani is only the third player in Dodgers history to hit 20 home runs in the team’s first 55 games, joining Gil Hodges in 1951 and Cody Bellinger in 2019. It has only happened 64 times in baseball history, most recently before Ohtani by Pete Alonso for the New York Mets in 2023.
This is the second time this month Ohtani has homered in three consecutive games. He has 13 home runs in May (two short of his personal high for a calendar month, set with the Angels).
Ohtani has hit a modest .263 (15 for 57) over the past 14 games – but more than half of those hits (eight) have been home runs.
Ohtani’s home runs have been as plentiful as the midges that have descended on Cleveland this week. Those annoying little flying insects had a breakout postseason in 2007, taking the national stage during Cleveland’s playoff series with the New York Yankees.
Michael Conforto’s home runs, on the other hand, seem to have come as frequently as the midges’ annual appearance. He hit a solo home run off Guardians reliever Hunter Gaddis in the sixth inning – his first homer since April 5 and only his seventh RBI of the season.
It was his second hit of the day, though, rare positive results from the veteran outfielder who came into the game batting .162 for the season with just two hits in his previous 23 at-bats – putting him in the crosshairs of a fan base with DFA fever after the release of veterans Austin Barnes and Chris Taylor.
Andy Pages and Dalton Rushing also had RBI singles in the second inning as the Dodgers’ offense set starter Dustin May up for success.
But May’s five innings Tuesday encapsulated the uneven results that have characterized his comeback season. He allowed just four hits and struck out a post-surgeries high nine. But he also gave up a three-run home run to Daniel Schneemann in the fourth inning on a sinker so poorly located that May threw his head back and his arms up in exasperation as Schneemann sent it on its way.
That briefly made the game close. But May, Jack Dreyer and Ben Casparius combined to retire 14 Guardians in order and the Dodgers’ offense kept adding on. Max Muncy put the game out of reach with the longest drive of the night, a three-run home run in the ninth that carried 403 feet through the midges.
More to come on this story.
Related Articles
Michael Conforto has earned ‘longer leash’ with Dodgers, Dave Roberts says Dodgers ride reliable Yoshinobu Yamamoto to victory over Guardians Dodgers’ Max Muncy: ‘I know I can be a good defender’ Dodgers’ offense dormant again in 2nd loss to Mets Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani faces hitters for 1st time since elbow surgery Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Ohtani, Conforto, Muncy all homer as Dodgers beat Guardians )
Also on site :