Shohei Ohtani collects his 197th hit of the season and his 59th stolen base, while Chris Taylor's solo home run secures the Dodgers' 98th win, defeating the Rockies 2-1 at Coors Field on Sunday.
FIFTY-NINE stolen bases for Shohei Ohtani!
— MLB (@MLB) September 29, 2024
He's been successful in 36 consecutive attempts. pic.twitter.com/J6yPkiDVyr
Ohtani finished the game 1 for 4 with a single and a stolen base. However, he fell just short of reaching the 50/100/400 club, ending the season with 54 home runs, 99 extra-base hits and 410 total bases.
Only five other players have achieved this feat: Luis Gonzalez, Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds all did it in 2001, while Jammie Foxx did it in 1932 and Babe Ruth accomplished it in 1921.
Ohtani concludes the season with a 12-game hitting streak. During this time, he recorded 29 hits in 53 at-bats. Ohtani finished the season with a .310 batting average, .390 OBP, .646 SLG, 54 HR, and a 1.036 OPS.
The Dodgers had their second bullpen game of the series. Left-hander Anthony Banda started the game by pitching one perfect inning on 14 pitches. Right-hander Landon Knack was originally scheduled to start but Dodgers manager Dave Roberts decided to go with Banda to open up the game.
Roberts wants to give Knack the feeling of coming out of the bullpen, as he would be used in that role when needed. On Saturday night, left-hander Justin Wrobleski was also used in the same way, pitching the last four innings of the game.
Knack gave up a monster solo home run to Rockies left fielder Sam Hilliard. The ball traveled 476 feet into the third deck in right field. Hilliard finished the season with 10 home runs and 27 RBI, while batting .239.
Knack struck out four batters, throwing 61 pitches in his last appearance of the season. He closed out with a record of 3-5 and a 3.65 ERA.
Left-hander Alex Vesia pitched a scoreless sixth inning, finishing the season with a 1.76 ERA, the best in Dodger history for a reliever with at least 50 appearances in a season.
The Dodgers' offense was silenced by right-hander Ryan Feltner, who pitched six full innings and allowed only one hit. Feltner started the seventh inning by walking James Outman, who had been called up on Sunday.
Teoscar Hernandez then followed with a single to left field, marking the second hit allowed by Feltner in the game.
The Rockies turned to the bullpen and called upon lefty specialist Luis Peralta, who retired the side on just 10 pitches. The Dodgers, trailing 1-0, left runners on the corners in their attempt to tie the game.
In the eighth inning, right-hander Victor Vodnik threw a 99 mph fastball to Chris Taylor. Taylor smashed it 396 feet over the right field wall. He ends the season with four home runs while batting .202.
CTied up! pic.twitter.com/Ph0B34EEYz
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) September 29, 2024
Ohtani went hitless in his first three at-bats of the game until the eighth inning, when he singled to right field. During a double steal, Austin Barnes advanced to third and Ohtani reached second, marking his 59th stolen base of the season.
Right-hander Seth Halvorsen replaced Vodnik in the eighth inning and balked, allowing Barnes to score from third for the second run of the inning.
The Dodgers' Evan Phillips and Michael Kopech pitched scoreless innings. Kopech's ERA as a Dodger is 1.13. Dodgers rookie right-hander Edgardo Henriquez closed out the game and earned his first career save. Henriquez was the 14th pitcher to earn a save for the Dodgers this season.
The Dodgers are waiting to see who they will play in the NLDS, which starts on Saturday at Dodger Stadium.