Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani Making Baseball History Rarely Seen in Last 124 Years

The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night as Shohei Ohtani continued his legendary season.
Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) steals second base during the second inning against the Chicago Cubs at Dodger Stadium on Sept 11.
Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) steals second base during the second inning against the Chicago Cubs at Dodger Stadium on Sept 11. / Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images
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The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Chicago Cubs 10-8 on Wednesday nght at Dodger Stadium. With the win, the Dodgers 87-59 on the season. They are continuing to battle with the Philadelphia Phillies for the top spot in the upcoming National League playoffs.

The Cubs fell to 75-71 and are now 5.0 games back with 16 to play.

As he usually is, Shohei Ohtani was the star of the show for Los Angeles, going 2-for-4 with a home run, a run scored and three RBI. He also walked and stole a base.

As he chases baseball's first-ever 50/50 season, he now has 47 home runs and 48 stolen bases. That alone is historic enough, but Ohtani is doing other things that have been rarely seen over the last 124 years.

Per Sarah Langs of MLB.com:

Shohei Ohtani has 12 games this season with a HR & SB

only player with more such games in a season since 1900:

1986 Rickey Henderson: 13

tied w/:
2023 Ronald Acuña Jr. 12
1973 Bobby Bonds: 12

Considering Henderson is a Hall of Famer and the greatest base stealer of all-time, it's impressive for Ohtani to be in his company on this one. Acuna Jr. won the MVP a year ago and Bonds was also an excellent player.

Ohtani is destined to win the MVP this season and when he does, he'll be only the second player to win the MVP Award in both leagues (Frank Robinson).

Ohtani is hitting .292 for the season and is carrying a .992 OPS.

The Dodgers will be off on Thursday.

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Brady Farkas

BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady.