04/23/24 10:20:00
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04/23 22:18 CDT Shohei Ohtani hits 450-foot homer into second deck at Nationals
Park in Dodgers' 4-1 win
Shohei Ohtani hits 450-foot homer into second deck at Nationals Park in
Dodgers' 4-1 win
By BYRON KERR
Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP) --- Shohei Ohtani hit a 450-foot homer to the second deck in
right field in his first visit to Nationals Park, and the Los Angeles Dodgers
beat Washington 4-1 on Tuesday night.
Ohtani's sixth homer of the season was the hardest-hit of his career at 118.7
mph. It was also the hardest-hit home run for a Dodgers player in the Statcast
era, which began in 2015. The solo shot in the ninth inning off Matt Barnes
made it 4-1 after pinch-hitter James Outman and Miguel Rojas drove in runs an
inning earlier to put Los Angeles ahead.
"There's only a few guys that can hit a ball like that," Dodgers manager Dave
Roberts said. "It was a topspin liner that reached the second deck. There's not
too many guys that can do that. Shohei, we've talked about controlling the
strike zone. When he does that, it is hard to get him out. It's lightning in
that bat. Any time he swings the bat and makes contact, he can change the game."
Ohtani, who's batting a major league-best .364, extended his hitting streak to
eight games and has 177 career homers. His previous longball on Sunday gave him
the record for homers by a Japanese-born player in Major League Baseball,
surpassing Hideki Matsui.
Outman, batting for Kik Hernndez, drilled a splitter from Hunter Harvey (1-1)
to right field for a double in the eighth to score Teoscar Hernndez from
second and break a 1-1 tie. Rojas followed with a run-scoring single.
Dodgers starter James Paxton needed 89 pitches to get through 4 2/3 innings,
scattering five hits and allowing one run.
"I thought tonight the command was better," Roberts said. "I still think we are
missing a gear with the swing and miss. At times the fastball was good. But
there is more swing and miss in there. I love the compete. I love that he was
attacking the strike zone. I would've loved for him to go a little bit longer."
Relievers Michael Grove, Alex Vesia (1-2), Daniel Hudson and Evan Phillips held
Washington scoreless the rest of the way. Phillips worked out of a bases-loaded
jam in the ninth for his sixth save.
"We don't put much thought into how deep the starter is going to go," Phillips
said. "The phone rings down there, guy answers, guy gets into the game and
tries to do his job. That's been our mindset. Results are going to be what they
are from the starter side, but we are always going to be ready down there."
Nationals starter Patrick Corbin, who allowed five runs in a 6-2 loss to the
Dodgers a week ago, worked 5 1/3 scoreless innings, allowing three hits, three
walks and striking out three on 86 pitches.
"We have seen Corbin a lot over the years and I think if his slider is sharp
and late then it's tough to lay off," Roberts said. "It looks like the fastball
and tonight I thought he had it working."
The Dodgers tied the game in sixth on an RBI single by Hernndez.
Freddie Freeman went 2-for-4 with a single and a double. Rojas had two singles.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Dodgers: Roberts said RHP Blake Treinen (bruised lung) will need three to four
rehab outings when he is healthy enough to pitch. Treinen's first rehab game
has not been announced. ... OF Jason Heyward (lower back tightness) will join
the team in Arizona around April 29. He has yet to swing a bat and Roberts
expects a rehab assignment of four or five games.
Nationals: RF Lane Thomas injured his left knee in the fifth inning and will
undergo an MRI Wednesday. ... Placed LHP Robert Garcia (flu) on the 15-day
injured list and called up RHP Jacob Barnes from Triple-A Rochester. ... C
Keibert Ruiz was sent to Double-A Harrisburg on a rehab assignment.
UP NEXT
The Dodgers send RHP Landon Knack (0-1, 3.60 ERA) to the mound against RHP Jake
Irvin (1-1, 3.13) in a rematch of last Wednesday's 2-0 Nationals win at Los
Angeles.
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
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