Los Angeles (United States) (AFP) – Shohei Ohtani belted his 54th home run of the season and Freddie Freeman homered twice as the Los Angeles Dodgers clinched the National League West division title on Thursday with an 8-0 thrashing of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Ohtani’s 54th homer matched his own single-season best and the Dodgers franchise record he set last year, when he became the first Major League Baseball player ever to record 50 home runs and 50 steals in the same season. The Japanese superstar is within two home runs of Philadelphia’s Kyle Schwarber for most in the National League. Seattle catcher Cal Raleigh leads the majors with 60 home runs this season.
The reigning World Series champion Dodgers secured their fourth straight division crown and their 11th in 12 years. After succumbing to a late D’Backs comeback on Tuesday and needing 11 innings to capture a victory on Wednesday, the Dodgers dominated in the series finale. Freeman’s 411-foot blast off Diamondbacks pitcher Nabil Crismatt in the second inning was immediately followed by a homer from Andy Pages. Mookie Betts singled in two runs to cap a four-run frame.
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Ohtani pushed the lead to 6-0 in the fourth inning, swinging low through the strike zone for a two-run homer that splashed down in the swimming pool located beyond the right center field wall at Chase Stadium. Freeman followed with a two-run shot to make it 8-0. Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto scattered four hits over six innings with two walks and seven strikeouts, and three Dodgers relievers combined to finish off the shutout. The Dodgers will finish the regular season with a three-game series against Raleigh and the Mariners in Seattle.
© 2024 AFP
