When Shohei Ohtani (LA Dodgers) opened the door, the Dodgers' batters responded fiercely and bombed the Cincinnati mound.
The Los Angeles Dodgers won the first game of the 2025 National League Wild Card Series (best of three games) with five home runs, increasing their chances of advancing to the Division Series. In the past major league wild-card series, the winning team's chances of advancing to the division series are 90% (18 out of 20).
The Dodgers won the first game of the wild card series against Cincinnati 10-5 on the morning of the 1st (Korea time) at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California. Onati and Teoscar Hernandez hit multiple home runs side by side, and Tommy Edman followed them with solo home runs.
It was Ohtani who played as a leadoff that made the attack clear.
Ohtani broke Cincinnati's spirit with a solo home run from his first at-bat in the bottom of the first inning when the score was 0-0.
Hunter Green was the starting pitcher for Cincinnati's most important Game 1. Green only pitched in 19 games due to injury in the middle of this season, but he won seven games (4 losses) and had a 2.76 ERA. Cincinnati had a strong four-seam fastball and sent it out with the most confidence.
But Green met the wrong opponent. I was beaten up by Ohtani. Green's pitch was powerful, but his heart was not. He failed to put the ball in the strike zone from the beginning against Ohtani. a first ball and a second ball in a row. On the third pitch, a 99.4-mile (about 160km) four-seam fastball slightly passed through the lower borderline of the strike zone.
The fourth pitch was also a four-pitch. This time, the faster ball of 100.4 miles (about 161 kilometers) headed to the strike zone on the body. But Ohtani was waiting for the ball of this course. Hunter threw 100.4 miles, the fastest ball ever hit by MLB hitters with home runs. However, no matter how fast the speed was, it was meaningless to Ohtani. Ohtani's swing is faster, stronger and more deadly.
Ohtani's lightning-wielding bat flew like a missile and quickly crossed the right fence. The batting speed was 117.7 miles (about 189.4 kilometers per hour). Ohtani broke Cincinnati's spirit in the first game of the wild-card series, where all eyes were focused with this shot.
Ohtani's first-inning leadoff home run immediately sparked a huge 'chain explosion effect' in the Los Angeles Dodgers lineup.
The Dodgers' batters burst once again in the bottom of the third inning with a 1-0 lead. After one out, Freddie Freeman and Max Muncy walked in a row. The green suddenly shook. He even committed a wild pitch and rushed to the second and third bases with one out.
Theosca, who appeared here, completely destroyed the green. When the second slider (90.4 miles) from the ball count 1B rose high, he pulled it happily. The bullet ball with a speed of 108.7 miles (about 174.9 kilometers per hour) flew like a missile and became a three-run home run that hit the left stands.
It wasn't the end here. Edman, who came out after Theosca, also immediately scored a superior solo home run against Green. The Dodgers' batters scored four runs in the bottom of the third inning alone with consecutive home runs by Hernandez and Edman. This is a series of explosions caused by Ohtana's leadoff home run in the first inning.
The Dodgers hitters did not stop like a runaway train. Teoscar hit his second home run of the day in the bottom of the fifth inning with a 5-0 lead. After two outs, he hit a superior solo home run against Connor Phillips, a changed pitcher.
Ohtani then exerted his power again. With a 6-0 lead, he came back to the plate at the bottom of the sixth inning with one out and a runner on the first base, pulling Phillips' 85.9-mile sweeper on his third pitch to make a two-run homer over the right-center field. Again, the batting speed was 113.5 miles. This marks Ohtani's first multi-homer game in the postseason. He increased his postseason home run to five.
The batters made an 8-0 lead by hitting as many as five home runs until the sixth inning, but the Dodgers bullpen also expressed anxiety on the day. He allowed two and three runs in the top of the seventh and eighth innings, respectively. However, the Dodgers were able to firmly defend their victory thanks to two runs added in the bottom of the seventh inning. Blake Snell, who started as a Dodgers starter, led his team to victory by pitching four hits, two runs, nine strikeouts, and one walk in seven innings.
This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
