LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani continues to prove why he’s the best player in baseball.
Ohtani propelled the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 5-1 win against the Milwaukee Brewers in Game 4 of the National League Championship Series, pitching six innings of brilliant ball while launching three home runs.
‘That was probably the greatest postseason performance of all time,’ Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. ‘There’s been a lot of postseason games. And there’s a reason why he’s the greatest player on the planet.
‘What he did on the mound, what he did at the plate, he created a lot of memories for a lot of people. So for us to have a game-clinching — to do it in a game-clinching game at home, wins the NLCS MVP, pretty special. I’m just happy to be able to go along for the ride.’
Ohtani was the starting pitcher and provided all the run support the Dodgers needed, with solo home runs in the first, fourth and seventh innings. His performance helped complete the sweep of the Brewers as the Dodgers advanced to the World Series for the second consecutive year.
Ohtani’s pitching performance, which ended when he was lifted in the seventh, concluded another stellar night from the Dodgers’ starting pitchers, following Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow.
He walked the Brewers’ leadoff hitter, Brice Turang, before striking out Jackson Chourio, Christian Yelich and William Contreras in order. He finished the night with 10 strikeouts, becoming the first player to strike out 10 and hit three homers in a game, per Sarah Langs.
‘I really focused on, first and foremost, as a starting pitcher to make sure I’m an effective starting pitcher,’ Ohtani said. ‘On the hitting side, looking at the entire team, we will see that at times the right-handed hitters picked us up. And on the flip side, sometimes the left-handed hitters picked us up. So in a sense we’re just trying to find the right balance.’
Ohtani provided an early spark at the plate with a solo home run in the bottom of the first inning to give the Dodgers a 1-0 lead. His teammates provided further run support in the first as Mookie Betts and Will Smith scored runs to give the Dodgers a 3-0 lead.
‘I think there was a lot of talk that he was scuffling at the plate; he doesn’t swing the bat well when he’s pitching. And all those things I think were fuel to his fire,’ Roberts said. ‘Today, when he took the mound, you can see the focus, the intent. And after that shutdown first inning, just the at-bat right there, you could see that he was smelling a really good night tonight.’
Jackson Chourio managed to get the Brewers’ first hit in the top of the fourth inning, ending Ohtani’s chance at a no-hitter.
But Ohtani launched a ball 469 feet toward center field for his second home run in the bottom of the fourth against Brewers pitcher Chad Patrick. He then got his third in the bottom of the seventh.
Shohei Ohtani stats: Dodgers vs. Brewers results
Batting: 3-for-3, 3 HR, 3 RBI, 1 BB
Pitching: 6 innings, 0 ER, 2 hits, 3 walks, 10 strikeouts
