Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani Had 'Deadly Serious' Reason For Wanting New Batting Cage

Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) swings and misses for strike three against the San Francisco Giants during the second inning at Oracle Park on Sept. 14. | D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

When the Dodgers undertook a reported $100 million worth of renovations between the 2024 and 2025 seasons, one upgrade mattered more than the rest to two-way star Shohei Ohtani.

It wasn't the toilets.

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In 2024, Dodger Stadium had only one dedicated batting cage on the home side of the stadium. Ohtani had enjoyed two when he played for the Angels from 2018-23. The number of available cages was one of few areas in which Ohtani was forced to downgrade when moving from Anaheim to Los Angeles.

Ohtani made a point to bring this up in conversation with Dodgers president and CEO Stan Kasten before the second cage was installed.

“He was walking around the clubhouse and we were still one of those teams that only had one batting cage," Kasten said in a new interview with the Starkville podcast. "OK, fine, we only have one batting cage."

Kasten said Ohtani told him "you know, other teams I’m seeing, they have two batting cages."

Like #Dodgers 2025 roster, Dodger Stadium very much a work in progress pic.twitter.com/lKMEd55aDh

— Bill Plunkett (@billplunkettocr) December 4, 2024

Kasten then explained the extent to which the Dodgers went to find space for a second cage, effectively tearing down the lower level of the stadium, from the seats to the basement.

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"And so he’s in my office one day in the offseason and we’re looking down at the field and it’s a construction site — and it’s worse, just horrible, because we’re putting in the batting cage along with other things," Kasten said. "I say to him: Sho, you know, we need this other batting cage. I get it, but you know last year you did 50-50 and last year we won the Silver Slugger for team offense — we did all that with one batting cage so do we really need it?

"He looks at me deadly seriously and says, ‘the batting cage is my home.’ I go, OK, I’ve got nothing to that, then. You got it. He was sincere about it, and I thought that was just great."

Ohtani followed up his 54-homer season in 2024 by hitting 55 home runs in 2025, a new career high and Dodgers franchise record. His on-base percentage ticked up to .392, and he scored 146 runs — more than any Dodger since Hub Collins in 1890, the team's first season in the National League.

Did adding a second batting cage make a difference? It's safe to say it didn't hurt.

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