MVP Contenders Ohtani and Crow-Armstrong Trade Leadoff Home Runs in the First Inning

Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Dodgers and Pete Crow-Armstrong of the Chicago Cubs, both considered leading Most Valuable Player (MVP) candidates in Major League Baseball (MLB) this season, went head-to-head in a fierce power display.

Ohtani and Crow-Armstrong traded two home runs each during the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs held at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois, on August 6 (Korean time).

The two hitters' bats caught fire right from the start.

Stepping up as the leadoff batter for the Dodgers in the top of the first inning, Ohtani hit a solo home run to right field off Cubs starting pitcher Shota Imanaga.

Then, after switching sides, Crow-Armstrong, leading off the bottom of the first for the Cubs, responded by launching a solo home run to center field off Dodgers starter Eric Lauer.

This is only the second time in the past 50 years that leadoff home runs were hit in both the top and bottom of the first inning at Wrigley Field.

According to sports statistics provider Elias Sports Bureau, this marks the first time that leadoff home runs have been exchanged between players who went on to finish in the top 10 of MVP voting that same year.

Gaining momentum, Crow-Armstrong added an RBI with a double to right field in the bottom of the second inning and then blasted a two-run homer to right field in the bottom of the fourth, giving the Cubs an early lead.

Ohtani's bat did not stay quiet either.

Trailing 4-7, Ohtani hit a two-run home run over the left-center field fence in the top of the eighth inning.

This is the first multi-home run game of the season for Ohtani.

However, despite Ohtani's performance, the Dodgers lost 6-7, suffering their first six-game losing streak of the season.

Crow-Armstrong, who recorded 3 hits in 5 at-bats with 4 RBIs including two home runs on the day, reached 26 home runs and 28 stolen bases for the season, surpassing the "25-25" (25 home runs and 25 stolen bases) milestone for the second consecutive year.

Crow-Armstrong is the first player in Cubs franchise history to achieve back-to-back 25-25 seasons.

Ohtani, who also went 3-for-5 with 3 RBIs, recorded his 26th home run of the season.

He has 6 stolen bases this season.

Looking at FanGraphs Wins Above Replacement (fWAR), Ohtani currently totals 6.4 for the season, combining 3.4 as a hitter and 3.0 as a pitcher.

On the other hand, Crow-Armstrong, regarded as one of the premier center fielders in the majors, leads the overall rankings with an fWAR of 7.4.

Having played in 115 games this season, Armstrong played as the designated hitter without taking the field defensively on this day.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.