If you’d asked any baseball fan or even the Los Angeles Dodgers team coming into the season about Shohei Ohtani, expectations wouldn’t have been sky-high. The Japanese star, who was hitting and pitching, could only hit this season because of his injury, which caused him to rest from pitching. But what a hero he is — Ohtani proved that he is just as good at hitting as pitching. So, now, he is being compared to the biggest names in the sport, Alex Rodriguez, and even Babe Ruth!

Shohei Ohtani became the first player in the history of the sport to achieve the remarkable fit of hitting 50 home runs and 50 bases. As fans celebrated his remarkable and much-awaited feat, they completely overlooked that Ohtani completed a 51-51. The local LA newspaper highlighted the majestic stats of the Japanese star with a huge front-page headline.

Shohei Ohtani’s historic ’51-51′ headline steals the spotlight!

The Los Angeles Times Sports had a 200-point headline ‘51-51’ in the newspaper. This is huge because right now, major things are happening in the country, including the elections. But they chose to highlight Ohtani’s groundbreaking score and bring to the attention that it’s not 50-50, but 51-51! It’s not every day we see such headlines for one sportsman, but then, the Los Angeles Dodgers player doesn’t do things that are normal either. Shohei Ohtani created history at the game against the Miami Marlins, and he did so with style.

Ohtani kicked things off with his 49th homer in the sixth inning. It was a crazy 438-foot shot that went soaring high. Then came his much-awaited 50th home run in the seventh inning—it was a two-run shot to the left. This made the fans go into a frenzy, but Shohei Ohtani was far from done. In the ninth inning, the Japanese star hit a massive 440-foot shot and made it to his 51st homer.

And if that wasn’t enough, he ended the night with a perfect 6-for-6 at the plate and an astonishing 10 RBIs. The crowds went crazy chanting his name, and even Shohei Ohtani was taken aback, He later said, “To be honest, I’m the one probably most surprised. I have no idea where this came from, but I’m glad I performed well today.” Well, it was an iconic day for the sport, a splendid day for the team, and historic for Ohtani. Not to mention a proud day for his home country, Japan, and they are as thrilled as everyone.

Ohtani’s historic feat lit up national pride in Japan

News spread like fire when Shohei Ohtani, a once-in-a-lifetime player, did something no one has ever done—he inaugurated the 50-50. As the cheers spread, so did the congratulatory messages from fans, the team, fellow sportsmen, athletes like LeBron James, and more. But his home country couldn’t leave it at just congratulations; the Japanese Embassy in DC released a statement from Ambassador Yamada hailing the Dodgers player.

The statement by the ambassador read, “Congratulations to Shohei Ohtani on making @MLB history! As the first player to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in the same season, he has brought people in Japan and the US together in celebration of our love of baseball and his unmatched talent.” Well, Ohtani has now passed the 50 home runs and clenched more home runs. With games still left to be played, it only remains to see, till he can stretch.

The Japanese headlines were taken over by Ohtani’s achievement too. Spokesperson Yoshimasa Hayashi told reporters, “We would like to congratulate him from the bottom of our hearts. We sincerely hope Mr. Ohtani, who has already accomplished feat after feat and carved out a new era, will thrive further.” This news is surely big for the country and for everyone interested in baseball!

The heroics of Ohtani even reached his little hometown in the north Iwate region. There, the broadcast channel captured a gleaming woman selling newspapers with pride. And that sums up Ohtani for you—a true inspiration and a source of pride for his community. What are your thoughts on Ohtani’s array of milestones in the sport? Share your take below.