Shohei Ohtani’s first home run of 2026 came in his seventh game of the season. Ryan Sun / Getty Images
April 3, 2026 2:12 pm EDT
WASHINGTON — The slow start for Shohei Ohtani and the Los Angeles Dodgers’ offense wasn’t going to last forever.
On Friday afternoon, Ohtani broke out of a slump in typical fashion. With the Dodgers trailing the Washington Nationals 3-0 in the top of the third, Ohtani saw a 1-0 hanging changeup from starter Miles Mikolas and pummeled it 401 feet to right-center for his first home run of the year. It jump-started a five-run frame for the Dodgers, who also benefited from a two-run homer from Mookie Betts later in the inning.
SHOTIME! pic.twitter.com/ORmLPlpKhr
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 3, 2026
Ohtani scuffled through the opening week of the season, going 3-for-18 in his first six games, though he did walk seven times. Still, his frustration over his start at the plate was evident after his first two-way outing of the year.
“I’ve been able to get on base and that’s a good thing,” Ohtani said after notching six scoreless innings in the Dodgers’ 4-1 win over the Cleveland Guardians on Tuesday. “But on pitches that I should be making impact I’m not quite able to do that to the extent that I should be able to. That’s the part that I’m not quite happy about.”
Ohtani’s frustration had grown to the point where he took batting practice on the field at Dodger Stadium on Wednesday — a rarity for the slugger. He went 0-for-3 that game with a walk and two strikeouts. Prior to Friday’s game, manager Dave Roberts said he wasn’t concerned about Ohtani’s slow start at the plate, but thought Ohtani could be getting antsy.
“I do know that he’s getting on base which is great at a high clip,” Roberts said. “I do think he’s getting a little anxious to get some hits.”
Now that his first homer is out of the way, perhaps that anxiety has subsided.
Apr 3, 2026
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