Freddie Freeman Encourages Shohei Ohtani’s Speedy On-Base Habit, Gels With Two-Way Star Amidst Spring Training

The power of friendship is getting strong in the Los Angeles Dodgers clubhouse. Ever since the Spring Training began, the vibes around the Blue Crew have been nothing short of infectious. Shohei Ohtani‘s arrival has met with quite a lot of love and gradually he has become a part of their family. While it’s known that Ohtani’s a locker room buddy of Mookie Betts, his relationship with Freddie Freeman was relatively unknown. The recent incident is a proof of the latter.

Shohei Ohtani’s No.2 in the feared 1-2-3 lineup of the Dodgers and Freeman’s job is to cover for Shotime. Initially, the Japanese superstar looked a little uneasy about being shifted to the No.2 role, but things have improved ever since then. With the Dodgers beginning to find their groove, Freeman has shared an important strategy he has prepared with Ohtani.

During an interview with SportsNet LA, Freddie Freeman talked about a variety of things. The slugger hoped that the Dodgers would score more runs this season because of their feared-hitting lineup. However, in the same breath, he noted how baseball’s a funny game and things can take a different turn anytime. Then the topic shifted to Ohtani, to which Freeman wished that the two-way phenom “steals 100” bases.

Encouraging Ohtani to make more steals this season, Freeman declared, “I’ll take every pitch, every time he steals I’ll take. We already talked about it…I said if you steal, go for it, I want you in scoring position. So I will take it every time. I hope he steals 100.” Freeman’s strategy makes sense as Ohtani has consistently proved to be one of the quickest players in the league.

Despite playing in a dysfunctional LA Angels team, Ohtani’s stealing record is quite good. In fact, one can expect these numbers to have exponential growth now that he’s in the Dodgers.

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Shohei Ohtani – A master stealer 

Ohtani has stolen 10+ bases in all but one season (the pandemic-shortened 2020 where he stole 7). Last season, the two-way phenom stole 20 bases and was caught stealing 6 more. Clearly, there’s a tendency to make these runs inside Ohtani. But this ability didn’t get much support in his Angels years due to the team’s strategy of focusing more on Home Runs. 

As a result, the Halos’ hitters kept slugging. This was visible in 2023 when (via baseball reference) the Halos ranked 3rd in the AL for Home Runs scored but were 15th for Stolen Bases with 72 bases scored. On the other hand, the Dodgers stole 105 bases last season. So in a team that supports base running, Ohtani’s talents will naturally flourish. At least, that’s what the Dodgers are hoping for.

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