Shohei Ohtani Crushes Leadoff Homer After Striking Out Three Batters in First Inning

The two-way superstar singlehandedly gave the Dodgers an early advantage in Game 4 of the NLCS on Friday.

Shohei Ohtani hit a leadoff homer for the Dodgers after he struck out three batters to start the first inning | Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Another day, another opportunity for Shohei Ohtani to find more ways to amaze us all.

The two-way superstar toed the rubber at Dodger Stadium Friday as L.A. tries to close the door on the Brewers to make their second World Series appearance in a row. Ohtani walked Milwaukee leadoff man Brice Turang to start the game, but he quickly bounced back by striking out Jackson Chourio, Christian Yelich and William Contreras to end the inning.

He had to quickly get off the mound to make it in time for his second job, hitting leadoff for the Dodgers. In his first at-bat of the day, he took Brewers starter José Quintana to a full count before he saw a breaking ball low and in the zone. Ohtani took the pitch 446 feet over the right-field wall and nearly out of Dodger Stadium to give himself the lead.

SHOHEI OHTANI!

WHAT A START! pic.twitter.com/fI8mNHanNn

— MLB (@MLB) October 18, 2025

According to MLB's Sarah Langs, Ohtani's solo shot was the first leadoff homer by a pitcher in MLB history, which counts the regular season and playoffs. It was also the first homer by a Dodgers pitcher ever in the playoffs and the first by any pitcher since 2018, also according to Langs.

He started a three-run first for the Dodgers as they aim to sweep the Brewers. Ohtani then went out in the second inning and retired the side in 10 pitches. In the fourth, he remarkably hit a ball even further, crushing an 89-mph cutter a whopping 469 feet for his second homer of the night. As if he needed to drop any more jaws, he sent this ball up and out of Dodger Stadium to give L.A. a 4–0 lead.

SHOHEI OHTANI HITS ONE OUT OF DODGER STADIUM. pic.twitter.com/LC93DjY27U

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) October 18, 2025

But wait, there's more. He smacked another homer, his third of the night, in the seventh. This time he sent the ball 427 feet over the center-field fence to make an even bigger statement on his truly historic night.

HE DOES IT AGAIN 🦄

SHOHEI OHTANI HAS A THREE-HOMER GAME! pic.twitter.com/EWGgYuuV6o

— MLB (@MLB) October 18, 2025

Per ESPN Insights, Ohtani became the first player in MLB history to hit two home runs in a postseason game as a pitcher. And he hit three of them. His night on the mound ended after six scoreless innings, striking out 10 batters and letting up three walks on 100 pitches.

Friday's Game 4 of the National League Championship Series marked Ohtani's second start of the playoffs. He threw six innings and recorded the win in L.A.'s Game 1 victory over the Phillies in the NL Division Series. At the plate, he now has three homers over the playoffs, adding onto the 55 he hit over the regular season.

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