Shohei Ohtani misses out on Triple Crown in final game of historic season
Shohei Ohtani steals second base during the Dodgers’ win over the Rockies in Denver on Sunday.
Shohei Ohtani fell short in his bid to become the first National League Triple Crown winner since 1937, but Chris Taylor’s home run helped power the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 2-1 win over the Colorado Rockies in Denver on Sunday to spoil Charlie Blackmon’s final game.
Ohtani, who led the NL in home runs (54) and RBIs (130), entered Sunday four points behind the San Diego Padres’ Luis Arraez for the NL batting crown.
Ohtani finished with a .310 average after going 1-for-4. He also stole his 59th base of the year.
“I didn’t even think about the triple crown,” Ohtani said through an interpreter. “I wasn’t aware of how close or far I was from it.”
Arraez went 1-for-3 to all but lock up the title with a .314 average. The Atlanta Braves’ Marcell Ozuna finished Sunday hitting .304 and went into Monday needing to go 9-for-9 in a doubleheader to win the batting title
Arraez won the American League title with the Minnesota Twins in 2022 and the NL crown last season with the Miami Marlins. The Padres acquired him from the Marlins in early May.
Arraez will be the first San Diego player to win the batting title since Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn in 1997. That was the last of eight batting crowns for the legendary Gwynn. The NL batting champion award is named after Gwynn.
The last MLB player to nab a triple crown was the Detroit Tigers’ Miguel Cabrera in the American League in 2012. It has not been achieved in the NL since the St. Louis Cardinals’ Joe Medwick did it in 1937.
Ohtani will still head into the first postseason of his career with plenty to celebrate — notably the establishment of the 50-homer, 50-stolen base club.
“You’ve seen a superstar,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said in comments posted on MLB.com. “I think the thing that I marvel at is the expectations that are put on him, that he puts on himself, and to still go out there every day and put on a show.”
Sam Hilliard homered during the Rockies’ game against the Dodgers, but Blackmon went into retirement with a loss.
Blackmon ran out to center field by himself before the first pitch and stood above the No. 19 carved into the grass in his honor. He was given a standing ovation by the home crowd before the rest of the Rockies joined him for the top of the first.
Blackmon got another standing ovation when he led off the bottom of the first. He singled up the middle in the third and was removed from the game to another standing ovation. He stood in front of the Colorado dugout in an emotional farewell to the fans.
Blackmon retires with 1,805 hits in 1,624 games, both second in franchise history to Hall of Famer Todd Helton, and as the leader in triples with 68.