LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani has propelled the Los Angeles Dodgers back to the World Series with a two-way performance for the ages.
Ohtani hit three mammoth homers and struck out 10 while pitching into the seventh inning, and the Dodgers swept the Milwaukee Brewers out of the NL Championship Series with a 5-1 victory in Game 4 on Friday night.
The Dodgers will have a chance to be baseball’s first repeat World Series champions in a quarter-century after this mind-blowing night for the three-time MVP Ohtani, who emphatically ended a quiet postseason by his lofty standards. Ohtani was named the NLCS MVP essentially on the strength of this one unforgettable game.
“It was really fun on both sides of the ball today,” Ohtani said through his interpreter. “As a representative (of the team), I’m taking this trophy, and let’s get four more wins.”
After striking out three in the top of the first inning of Game 4, Ohtani hit the first leadoff homer by a pitcher in major league history off Brewers starter Jose Quintana.
Ohtani followed with a 469-foot blast in the fourth, clearing a pavilion roof in right-center.
Ohtani added a third solo shot in the seventh, becoming the 12th player in major league history to hit three homers in a playoff game. His three homers traveled a combined 1,342 feet.
Ohtani (2-0) also thoroughly dominated the Brewers in his second career postseason mound start, allowing two hits in his first double-digit strikeout game in a Dodgers uniform.
The numbers tell the story. Ohtani is the first player in MLB history to hit two-plus homers as a pitcher in a postseason game, according to ESPN Research. He is also the first MLB player ever with more homers hit (3) than hits allowed (2) in a postseason pitching start and the first player to hit a leadoff homer as a pitcher (regular season or postseason).
“Sometimes you’ve got to check yourself and touch him to make sure he’s not just made of steel,” said Freddie Freeman, last season’s World Series MVP. “Absolutely incredible. Biggest stage, and he goes out and does something like that. It’ll probably be remembered as the Shohei Ohtani game.”
After the Brewers’ first two batters reached in the seventh, he left the mound to a stadium-shaking ovation – and after Alex Vesia escaped the jam, Ohtani celebrated by hitting his third homer in the bottom half.
The powerhouse Dodgers are the first team to win back-to-back pennants since Philadelphia in 2009. Los Angeles is back in the World Series for the fifth time in nine seasons, and it will attempt to become baseball’s first repeat champs since the New York Yankees won three straight World Series from 1998 to 2000.
“That was special,” Freeman said. “We’ve just been playing really good baseball for a while now, and the inevitable kind of happened today – Shohei. Oh my God. I’m still speechless.”
After capping a 9-1 rampage through the NL playoffs with this singular performance by Ohtani, the Dodgers are headed to the World Series for the 23rd time in franchise history, including 14 pennants since moving from Brooklyn to Los Angeles. Only the Yankees, last year’s opponent, have made more appearances in the Fall Classic (41).
Los Angeles will have a week off before the World Series begins next Friday, either in Toronto or at Dodger Stadium against Seattle. The Mariners beat the Blue Jays 6-2 earlier Friday to take a 3-2 lead in the ALCS, which continues Sunday at Rogers Centre.
The Dodgers had never swept an NLCS in 16 previous appearances, but they became only the fifth team to sweep this series while thoroughly dominating a 97-win Milwaukee club. Los Angeles is the first team to sweep a best-of-seven postseason series since 2022, and the first to sweep an NLCS since Washington in 2019.
“I’ll tell you, before this season started, they said the Dodgers are ruining baseball,” Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts shouted to the crowd during the on-field celebration. “Let’s get four more wins and really ruin baseball!”
The NL Central champion Brewers were eliminated by the Dodgers for the third time during their current stretch of seven playoff appearances in eight years. Even after setting a franchise record for wins this season, Milwaukee is still waiting for its first World Series appearance since 1982.
“We were part of tonight an iconic, maybe the best individual performance ever in a postseason game,” Milwaukee manager Pat Murphy said. “I don’t think anybody can argue with that. A guy punches out 10 and hits three homers.”
The Brewers had never been swept in a playoff series longer than a best-of-three, but their bats fell silent in the NLCS against the Dodgers’ brilliant starting rotation. Los Angeles’ four starters combined to pitch 28 2/3 innings with two earned runs allowed and 35 strikeouts.
The Dodgers added two more runs in the first after Ohtani’s tone-setting homer, with Mookie Betts and Will Smith both singling and scoring.
Jackson Chourio doubled leading off the fourth for Milwaukee’s first hit, but Ohtani stranded him with a groundout and two strikeouts.
Struggling Dodgers reliever Blake Treinen allowed two more baserunners in the eighth, and Caleb Durbin scored when Brice Turang beat out his potential double-play grounder before Anthony Banda ended the inning.
Roki Sasaki pitched the ninth in the latest successful relief outing for the Dodgers’ unlikely closer.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
