The Los Angeles Dodgers are going to the playoffs again, continuing a fall tradition.
They secured their 12th straight postseason spot on Thursday with a 20-4 victory over the Miami Marlins. On that same night, star player Shohei Ohtani hit three home runs and stole two bases, making history as the first player ever to have 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a season.
The magic number for the Dodgers to clinch the NL West title is now six. They have a 2.5-game lead over the Milwaukee Brewers as they aim for the second seed in the National League and a first-round bye in the playoffs. They are four games ahead of the San Diego Padres in their division.
The New York Yankees and Brewers were the first teams to secure playoff spots on Wednesday. The Cleveland Guardians also locked in a spot earlier on Thursday.
Los Angeles has won at least 90 games in each of the last 11 full seasons.
The only year they didn’t win the division was in 2021, when they finished one game behind the San Francisco Giants after winning 107 games.
However, during this period, the Dodgers have only one World Series title, which they won in the shortened 2020 season.
Ohtani also doubled twice, had a single, and drove in a record 10 runs for the franchise on Thursday. He nearly hit for the cycle but was thrown out at third base while trying to turn his second double into a triple in the third inning.
Ohtani, who signed a $700 million, 10-year contract with the Dodgers last December, is going to the playoffs for the first time in his career after not making it during his six years with the Los Angeles Angels.
“I changed teams this year and my goal has always been to make it to the playoffs,” Ohtani said through an interpreter. “It is something I really worked hard at, and I’m really happy that we were able to make it.”
