Shohei Ohtani’s 1st home run for Dodgers helps them sweep Giants
LOS ANGELES — It was finally vintage Shohei Ohtani on Wednesday with a loud crack, the arched back on his follow through and a high finish as the baseball soared deep into the night.
In his ninth game with his new team, Ohtani finally delivered his first home run in a Dodgers uniform and all seemed right again.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts had been asked about Ohtani and his lack of power for days. And when one of the most anticipated of Dodgers home runs had cleared the wall in right-center, the player who hit it was as stoic as ever.
Ohtani jogged the bases with nary an expression on his face and received his greeting at home plate from teammate Freddie Freeman. There was a shower of sunflower seeds from Teoscar Hernandez as he approached the dugout steps and then high-fives all around in the Dodgers’ dugout.
That the long ball came in a key moment only heightened the excitement for the Dodgers, who earned a 5-4 victory to complete a three-game sweep of the rival San Francisco Giants.
Ohtani’s homer came one inning after the Giants had pulled with a run and threatened to steal a win before heading to San Francisco for their home opener. The Giants will have to limp back now, losers in five of seven games to open their season.
Tyler Glasnow earned his second win in a Dodgers uniform by allowing three runs on four hits over six innings as he threw a season-high 100 pitches and seemed to fade late in his outing.
Glasnow had seven strikeouts with two walks. The only hit he allowed over the first four innings was a home run in the third from No. 8 hitter Patrick Bailey.
Miguel Rojas received the start at shortstop against Giants left-hander Kyle Harrison and hit a home run in the fourth inning, his second of the season. Rojas didn’t hit his first home run last season until Aug. 2 and then hit four more over the next 6½ weeks, with the power surge continuing into 2024.
Mookie Betts shifted to second base for the night and continued his torrid start on offense. His leadoff single in the first inning put him on base in seven of his nine opening at-bats this season.
Rojas gave the Dodgers their first run in the second inning on an RBI ground out before the Giants tied it on Bailey’s home run in the third.
Will Smith had an RBI double in the third inning and Hernandez followed him with an RBI single as the Dodgers extended their advantage to 3-1. Rojas’ home run in the fourth made it 4-1.
The Giants pulled within a run against Glasnow in the sixth inning when Michael Conforto hit a two-run single.
That set the stage for Ohtani, who ripped into a high 3-and-1 fastball from Rogers for a 430-foot blast that registered an exit velocity of 105.6 mph.
The home run came in the 41st plate appearance for the two-time American League MVP, who left the Angels after last season as a free agent and agreed to a record $700 million, 10-year contract with the Dodgers.
The home run, the 172nd of Ohtani’s MLB career, proved to be even more vital when Jorge Soler again brought the Giants to within a run at 5-4 in the eighth with his own blast, a 452-foot shot to left-center field.
New Dodgers right-hander Dinelson Lamet finished off the victory with a scoreless ninth inning for his first career save.
More to come on this story.