MINNEAPOLIS — The ideal path to view Monday's total solar eclipse was well south of the Twin Cities. Instead, Twins fans were treated to a kind of lunar eclipse in the bottom of the seventh inning of a game the Dodgers won 4-2 at Target Field.
James Outman and Shohei Ohtani hit solo home runs with sky-high moonshots in the seventh inning. While Outman's first hit put the Dodgers in the lead, 3-2, Ohtani's third two-out hit of the year all came in the last five games — thanks to Dodgers pitching mediocrity. , it became unnecessary insurance. The last 18 Twins batters they faced.
Ohtani hit two doubles en route to his home run and has eight extra-base hits in his last five games. He also has a five-game multi-hit streak, the longest streak of his career.
Although it hasn't been that long since he wore Dodger blue, Ohtani quickly showed he was capable of living up to the high expectations that came with his arrival.
Manager Dave Roberts said, “When he swings the bat and barrels it, the ball is going to come out real hot.” “That's something I've never seen. When he can control the strike zone and throw the ball in the nitro zone, there's no better hitter.”
Winning pitcher James Paxton, who allowed two runs and struck out four in six innings, is well aware of the damage Ohtani can do. Last year, when the Angels suffered Paxton's first loss of the year against Boston, Ohtani went deep on him.
“I mean, it's pretty great to see. If he hits the barrel on the ball, it's going to miss by 105 or higher,” Paxton said. “It's pretty amazing how hard he swings and how hard he hits the ball. I'm glad to have him on my side.”
Ohtani's home run was a reverse shot that hit the bat at 166.9 mph with a launch angle of 38 degrees. Twins relief pitcher Jay Jackson, who allowed two home runs in the seventh inning, could only watch as the ball was carried away and eventually landed just beyond the flower box on the left field wall.
“Shohei pitched well, had a good swing, is a great player. It happens,” Jackson said. “He's just so strong. That ball went out. I was surprised, but he's a big guy, so I think he's going to hit it a lot more.”
Ohtani's home run was his 174th in the major leagues, one step shy of Hideki Matsui, who holds the most home runs in MLB by a Japanese-born player, but Outman's home run was his 25th of his career and his first of the season. He entered the game with a 4-for-32 record to start 2024, and admitted he was a little relieved when the ball went over the 23-foot wall on the right side.
“It felt good to see the ball land,” Outman said. “It's still early in the season so it's a little early to panic, but it's certainly a start in the right direction.”
Roberts praised the young center fielder for keeping his cool during difficult times, not just over the past two weeks.
“If ever there was a time to panic, it was last year. Last year we didn't panic,” Roberts said. “So I think the most important thing for us and for him is knowing that he can get to the other side is very helpful.”
Having an all-world talent like Ohtani, a fellow left-handed hitter, in the lineup isn't a bad thing. But Outman pointed out that trying to pick up on hints when studying Ohtani's at-bats can be as useful as trying to learn how to fly by watching “Superman.”
“He's done things in baseball that no one else can do, so it's hard to try to emulate him and it's hard to try to be like him,” Outman said. “Everyone in this clubhouse got to the big leagues by being themselves, and we all want to be that way, but we still have to be ourselves.”