Ohtani’s first‑pitch homer

Shohei Ohtani opened Sunday’s game by homering on the first pitch he saw from Jacob deGrom, then watched the Dodgers lose 5-2 to the Texas Rangers on April 12. (espn.com) The ball came on a 97.9 mile-per-hour fastball and cleared right-center field for Ohtani’s fifth home run of the 2026 season. It was his 26th career leadoff homer, according to the Associated Press game recap carried by ESPN. (espn.com) Ohtani had also led off with a home run one day earlier, in the Dodgers’ 6-3 win over Texas on April 11. That made it back-to-back games with a leadoff shot at Dodger Stadium. (espn.com) The swing landed early in a season when Ohtani had already broken through one slow start. He did not hit his first homer of 2026 until April 3, when he launched a three-run shot in a 13-6 win over the Washington Nationals. (mlb.com) By April 12, Ohtani’s on-base streak had reached 46 games, the fifth-longest in Dodgers history behind Duke Snider, Shawn Green, Willie Keeler and Ron Cey. The streak stretched back across the end of last season and into the Dodgers’ 11-4 start. (espn.com) Ohtani is 31 and is listed by Baseball-Reference as both a designated hitter and pitcher, a rare two-way role that has defined his career since his Major League debut in 2018. Baseball-Reference lists him with 284 career home runs through April 13, 2026. (baseball-reference.com) The first-pitch homer spread quickly beyond the box score because it came against deGrom, one of baseball’s hardest-throwing starters, and because Ohtani did it from the first batter’s spot in the order. In one swing, the Dodgers had a 1-0 lead before many fans had settled in. (espn.com) The game still turned on Texas’ response, not Los Angeles’ start. DeGrom allowed only that run in six innings, and the Rangers avoided a three-game sweep even after Ohtani’s instant jolt. (espn.com)