If Shohei Ohtani is determined to secure the first NL triple crown since 1937, it appears that he will have to do so without any assistance from the San Diego Padres, as expected.
As of Saturday, Ohtani had already claimed two out of the three necessary stats for this rare achievement. Leading the NL with 54 home runs, he was 15 ahead of Marcell Ozuna in second place. His 130 RBI also put him 19 ahead of Willy Adames. The only category where he fell short was batting average, trailing Padres infielder Luis Arraez by five points with a .309 average.
This set the stage for two games where Ohtani would have the opportunity to surpass Arraez, with both players scheduled to play at the hitter-friendly ballparks of Coors Field and Chase Field. However, when the Padres released their lineup on Saturday, Arraez was conspicuously absent.
While some Padres starters, such as Manny Machado and Jurickson Profar, were still in the lineup, players like Arraez, Fernando Tatis Jr., and Jackson Merrill were given the day off.
It should be noted that the Padres had a valid reason for resting some key players. With their victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday securing the top wild-card spot in the NL, they have nothing left to play for in this final weekend of the regular season.
It will be intriguing to see if Arraez returns to play should Ohtani continue his scorching hot streak. Benching a player to protect his batting average may not be a popular decision, but Padres fans likely wouldn’t mind thwarting a rival player’s quest for further accolades.
If Arraez remains sidelined for the last two games, Ohtani could potentially clinch the triple crown with impressive batting performances such as 6-for-8, 6-for-9, 6-for-10, or 6-for-11. Even a 5-for-7 showing would put him in contention. And given Ohtani’s current form, achieving such feats seems entirely plausible.
Since his remarkable three-homer, two-steal game on September 19 that sealed the first 50-50 season in MLB history, Ohtani has been unstoppable. He boasts a batting line of .706/.737/1.412 with six homers, six doubles, 14 runs, 20 RBI, and eight stolen bases during this period, resulting in an astronomical OPS of 2.149.
Over these eight games, Ohtani has amassed 48 total bases. If stolen bases were factored into total bases, he would tie Willie Mays for the most in such a span in MLB history.
At this point, the triple crown remains a lofty aspiration for Ohtani. Nevertheless, his performance this season will undoubtedly be remembered as one of the most exceptional offensive displays in MLB history, highlighted by his groundbreaking combination of home runs and stolen bases at 54-57.
Following the Dodgers’ triumph in the NL West against the Padres on Thursday and securing the best record in MLB on Saturday after the Philadelphia Phillies’ loss to the Washington Nationals, Ohtani is poised to embark on his playoff journey in the NLDS next month.