Shohei Ohtani’s much-anticipated Dodgers debut mostly lived up to the hype.
The superstar slugger picked up his first two hits and his first RBI in a Dodgers uniform Wednesday during a 5-2 victory over the Padres in Seoul to kick off the 2024 MLB regular season.
Batting second in the Los Angeles lineup, the Japanese-born Ohtani grounded into a forceout in the top of the first inning before collecting his first hit — a line drive against countryman Yu Darvish — in the third.
During that second at-bat, the 29-year-old Ohtani pulled a 119.2-mph drive deep into foul territory, striking the roof at Gocheok Sky Dome in a jaw-dropping display of his prodigious power.
The Dodgers trailed most of the game before a four-run, eighth-inning rally that Ohtani capped with an RBI single to left-center. Ohtani finished the day 2-for-5 with an RBI and a stolen base.
“That swing [where] he pulled it in the air foul really took a good swing,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said afterward. “I think that kind of bled into the at-bat where he ended up lining a ball to right field and had another big base hit later in the game. Just a good night overall from Shohei.”
Left-handed reliever Wandy Peralta, who signed with San Diego last month after three seasons with the Yankees, allowed one run in the Dodgers’ rally. Jhony Brito, whom the Yankees traded to the Padres in their December deal for Juan Soto, surrendered two runs and took the loss.
Ohtani, a hitting-and-pitching sensation who twice won American League MVP in his six seasons with the Angels, joined the Dodgers in December on an unprecedented 10-year, $700 million contract featuring heavily deferred money.
The lefty-swinging, righty-throwing Ohtani is not expected to pitch this season after undergoing his second elbow surgery in five years last September. Ohtani, who operated as the Dodgers’ designated hitter Wednesday, is set to begin a throwing program soon and could play the field this season, Roberts said this week.
The uniquely talented Ohtani led Japan to a World Baseball Classic title last March, then slugged 44 home runs and pitched to a 3.14 ERA over 132 innings en route to his second MVP trophy. He brings with him immense international star power but is yet to play on MLB’s biggest stage, having missed the postseason every year with the Angels.
He hopes that changes with the Dodgers, who enter 2024 with World Series aspirations after winning 100 games last season and also adding pitchers Tyler Glasnow and the Japanese ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto (for $325 million over 12 years) in the offseason.
Wednesday marked the first-ever MLB game in South Korea. The Dodgers and Padres are set to play there again Thursday in the second game of the “Seoul Series.” The rest of the MLB teams begin the regular season next week.
