Shohei Ohtani's hard
WASHINGTON (AP) — Shohei Ohtani’s 450-foot home run on Tuesday night at Nationals Park was the hardest hit of his career.
The Los Angeles Dodgers star’s ninth-inning shot to the second deck in right field off Washington Nationals reliever Matt Barnes in the Dodgers 4-1 win left his bat at 118.7 mph.
“I thought I hit it really good,” Ohtani said Wednesday through his interpreter, Will Ireton. “I felt really good about it. Probably the best.”
It is the hardest-hit home run by a Dodger in the Statcast era, which began in 2015. The designated hitter leads the majors in batting average (.364), slugging percentage (.677) and OPS (1.107). He now has six home runs in his first 25 games with Los Angeles since signing a 10-year, $700 million contract.
Tuesday’s shot might have drawn more attention than most of Ohtani’s homers, but his typical contact stands out to Dodgers manager Dave Roberts.