The text on my phone read “Holy Crap Ohtani” and was sent on a Friday night, way past my bedtime.
As I shook off the Saturday morning cobwebs, I checked to see what the Los Angeles Dodgers great had done in Game 4 of the National League Championship Series hours earlier.
Holy Crap indeed.
On Friday, October 17, 2025, in a perfect Los Angeles fall evening, two baseball teams took the field for a playoff game that soon would be unforgettable. Thanks to Shohei Ohtani, a rare athlete whose existence is usually lived in novels and movies, he wrote the perfect script to bounce his opponents, the Milwaukee Brewers, dominating them in every aspect of the game and advancing to the World Series for the second straight year.
What made this baseball game such an awesome note in US History that I needed to write an essay about it? It’s because Ohtani’s performance was unique. What he did is so unbelievable because baseball is a sport that doesn’t allow this type of athletic brilliance.
Ohtani is a two-way player in baseball, meaning he can pitch at the highest level of the Major Leagues and is also a functioning hitter. But to suggest that Ohtani is a baseline player at the plate and the mound is the greatest insult to someone as gifted as he is.
Game 4 showed his supremacy. The Dodgers had a commanding series lead over the Brewers, winning the first three games of a best-of-seven. Ohtani was the starting pitcher for Game 4, and in the top of the first, he struck out three Brewers batters. In the bottom of the inning, Ohtani led off the game with a rocket of a home run:
The game was effectively over at that point. You can see the reactions of the Brewers on that hit—the catcher turns away, the pitcher looks down. They knew their season was over. But Ohtani was just getting started. He would throw a two-hit, 10-strikeout masterpiece over six plus scoreless innings. He also mashed another two home runs, one of them leaving Dodger Stadium. The final was 5-1, and the 50,000 plus in attendance and millions who stayed up to watch on television, witnessed the best baseball game ever played.
The likelihood of this type of performance from a player happening again is small, but then again, Ohtani and the Dodgers return to action tonight for the beginning of the World Series, so there’s a chance he could repeat himself. Last Friday showed that Ohtani has increased his floor and ceiling of expectations of what he can do.
Ohtani is an elite pitcher and hitter, a combination the sport hasn’t seen since a guy named Babe Ruth waddled the basepaths and towered over his competitors, who, one could argue, weren’t the most athletic by the standards we have today. Ohtani easily separates himself into his own category because his contemporaries are also athletically gifted, yet he is leagues above them in ability and performance. His lead-off home run was the first from a pitcher in any game played – regular season or playoffs. You may no longer be shocked to learn that he is the only player to hit three home runs and strike out ten batters in one game.
I didn’t even bother trying to find out who would come close to this. That person just doesn’t exist.
Ohtani continues to ascend as one of the greatest athletes in any sport. Born in Japan in 1994, he quickly became a baseball prodigy. Drafted in 2012 by the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of the Nippon Baseball League, by 2016, Ohtani was the league’s best pitcher. The Fighters won the Japanese Series title a year later, and Ohtani was the Most Valuable Player.
In 2017, he signed with the Los Angeles Angels and debuted in 2018, winning Rookie of the Year. In 2021, he was a unanimous MVP of the league. In 2023, he posted one of the best all-around seasons by anyone in history—becoming the first player to be selected unanimously again for MVP. His pitching performance put him in discussions for the highest awards.
In 2024, he signed with the crosstown rivals, the Dodgers, and would go on to yet again win another unanimous MVP award. He hit a home run in the All-Star Game for the National League and would be the winning pitcher, another first in a long list of firsts for this guy. Ohtani would finish the year with 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases, because, sure, why not? He would lead the Dodgers to win the World Series and defeat those No Good Cheating New York Yankees.
Fast forward to this season, and last Friday, when he continued to rewrite the record books.
I love playoff baseball—not enough to stay up past 9:00 p.m., but still. The World Series kicks off tonight and features the Toronto Blue Jays, whose last appearance was in 1993, when my favorite player, Joe Carter, hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning in Game 6 to beat the Philadelphia Phillies. It’s one of those moments when you remember where you were. I was actually up! Happy for my guy and former Cleveland Indian, Carter, but sad that he wasn’t doing it for my team. Thank goodness I could have that experience again, since the current Jays squad has quite a few former Guardians on the team.
I’m sorry I missed Ohtani’s performance in real time. I appreciate the awesomeness that he is as I read and watch the highlights. In a world that is challenging and uncertain in many ways, Ohtani brings awe-inspiring moments for us to escape and enjoy. On top of all this, he’s a nice guy who is well-liked in the clubhouse and around the league.
Nice, dominant, fun to watch—a trifecta that you can easily cheer for. If only they would play these games at 9:00 a.m., I could watch them, witness awesomeness in the moment, and remember where I was forever.
I will miss Game 1 of the World Series and not just because I need to sleep since the start time is 8:00 p.m. Anonymous, Blue, and I are about 22 miles west of Monticello and 44 miles northwest of Appomattox Court House for the next few days. Anonymous needed some time away since a lot is going on in the spy world, and I can work remotely.
I have to say, Virginia is a beautiful state, especially in the Fall. We are staying at one of the 5,000 vineyards that populate the area and then at a cabin/lodge in Shenandoah National Park. There are no televisions in these places, so I’ll have to wait to get the texts.
Blue and I have had a few nice early morning walks as the sun comes over the mountains. It’s been great.
I am grateful for your support of Okay History. It’s like a nice Fall morning walk with your best boy. You savor the moment of gratitude.
I’ll see you on Monday. Until then, have a great weekend! I hope you can get outside and enjoy nature.
What a beautiful place to enjoy a week in the fall! I hope you, Anonymous and Blue get plenty of R&R.