Shohei Ohtani signed with the Dodgers in December 2023 and in his first two years he has the two highest home run seasons in franchise history. In doing so he’s only the sixth player in major league history to hit 50 home runs in consecutive seasons, and the first to do so in 23 years.
He hit his 50th home run of 2025 on Tuesday in the eighth inning against Phillies reliever David Robertson.
With 11 games still
remaining, Ohtani has a chance to break his own Dodgers record of 54 home runs, set last year. He’s on pace for 54 home runs this season.
Last season, Ohtani hit his 50th home run in the Dodgers’ 153rd game of the season. It was kind of a big day for him. This year on the day he hit his 50th home run, Ohtani had already pitched five scoreless, hitless innings with five strikeouts.
Ohtani is the first player to hit 50 home runs in consecutive seasons since Alex Rodríguez in 2001-02 with the Texas Rangers. Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, who hit 58 home runs last season, has 48 home runs this year and might very well join Ohtani in the back-to-back 50 club.
Tuesday’s home run gave Ohtani 104 in his two years with the Dodgers. He hit his 100th home run with the team back on September 2, reaching that milestone in 294 games, 26 percent faster than the previous Dodgers record-holder, Gary Sheffield.
A fun fact about this group is that they all led the majors or their league in home runs during these seasons, except for Sammy Sosa, who led the National League with 50 home runs in 2000 but in his three years of 60-plus home runs did not lead the league in any of those seasons.
At the moment, Ohtani’s 50 home runs are three shy of Kyle Schwarber of the Phillies for the National League lead. Ohtani in 2024 was just the third Los Angeles Dodgers player to lead the NL in home runs, along with Matt Kemp in 2011 and Adrian Beltré in 2004.
