Ohtani’s 40th homer puts him in rare group with Panda originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Shohei Ohtani and former Giants star Pablo Sandoval now are forever linked.
The Angels’ two-way superstar joined Sandoval in an exclusive statistical group Thursday night when he homered, stole a base and had a scoreless pitching outing in the same game.
Per MLB.com’s Sarah Langs, the only other two players to do that are Sandoval (2019) and Christy Mathewson (1905).
Ohtani started the game on the mound for the Angels and pitched four scoreless innings before being removed due to right hand cramping. But he remained in the game as the designated hitter, and in the sixth inning, he stole his 14th base of the season.
In the bottom of the eighth, Ohtani crushed his MLB-leading 40th homer of the season, achieving a feat accomplished just three times in the history of the sport.
Sandoval’s impressive day came in a Giants’ blowout loss to the Cincinnati Reds on May 6, 2019. He stole third base in the second inning, hit a two-run homer in the sixth inning and pitched a scoreless ninth inning in San Francisco’s 12-4 loss.
Ohtani very likely will win AL MVP this season and is set to become a free agent this winter, with the Giants expected to heavily pursue him.
If Ohtani joins the Giants, he would have plenty of opportunities to accomplish the rare feat again, this time while wearing Orange and Black and possibly with Sandoval in attendance.
