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LA Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani defied logic during his historic 50/50 season in 2024. Ohtani shattered the previous 40/40 mark by stealing 59 bases while smacking 54 dingers. However, Ohtani wasn’t always a prolific base stealer. Before 2024, his career high was 26 swipes in 2021. As such, Ohtani more than doubled his previous career high.
But achieving that feat was no fluke. Dodgers conditioning coach Travis Smith revealed the secret to Shohei Ohtani’s record-setting season: hard work.
In a Japanese-language interview published by NHK and posted on Shobae on Sunday, Smith described how Ohtani managed to achieve the historic milestone:
“I’m all in. I want to be able to steal more bases this year. If I can be on the bases more, if I can steal second, that puts me in scoring position to help the next guy.”
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From day one, Ohtani’s mind was set on stealing more bases to help the team. That prompted him to work with Smith to improve his overall baserunning and sprinting skills.
Smith recalled his experience working with Shohei Ohtani this past season:
“That’s the first time I saw one individual really work towards, like, sprinting outside our normal conditioning that we provide, the team, that everyone would do. Like, he would go off to the side, after he’d come off the field, and work on these sprint techniques.”
Smith concluded his thoughts by saying:
“That was more consistent than I’ve seen in any other player.”
Ohtani’s consistency could potentially help him reprise the 50/50 mark next season. Perhaps a 60/60 season may be on the horizon for a player already building an impressive Hall of Fame resume.
Shohei Ohtani atop an exclusive club
Before Ohtani’s brilliant 50/50 campaign, the 40/40 club was considered the epitome of the power-speed combo.
The first player to break the 40/40 mark was Jose Canseco in the late 80s, with Barry Bonds managing to join him. Additionally, Alex Rodriguez, Alfonso Soriano, Ronald Acuña and Shohei Ohtani can claim fame to this elite club.
However, Ohtani created two new clubs that may lack another member for a while. First, the 50/40 club of 50 homers and 40 steals, and the 50/50 club has just one member: Ohtani.
It’s mind-boggling to envision just how difficult it is to achieve such a feat in Major League Baseball. The athleticism and strength needed to attain one of those feats can catapult an athlete into stardom. But achieving both in a single season is something beyond ordinary standards.
Nevertheless, there are three other clubs that Ohtani may be interested in joining: the 30/60, 49/60 and 40/70. The only player to achieve these feats is Ronald Acuña Jr. Perhaps Shohei Ohtani can use his power and speed to join Acuña in an otherworldly club.
