Shohei Ohtani snapped a slow start to his 2026 campaign by belting his first home run of the year Friday, a three-run shot in the third inning that erased an early deficit and ignited a Los Angeles Dodgers rally against the Washington Nationals. The blast sailed into right field and pulled the Dodgers level after Washington had opened the scoring on CJ Abrams’ three-run homer in the first.
The Ohtani homer proved the first domino in a quick offensive outburst. Two batters later Mookie Betts delivered a two-run homer, and the barrage continued as Andy Pages and Freddie Freeman added two-run shots in the third and fourth innings, respectively, turning a tense early game into a multi-homer onslaught for Los Angeles. The sequence underscored the depth of the Dodgers’ lineup and how quickly momentum can swing once the big bats begin to connect.
Ohtani entered Friday’s game mired in an unusually sluggish stretch at the plate, carrying a .167/.423/.167 line with just three hits in 18 at-bats, though he had drawn multiple walks and scored twice. The Japanese two-way star’s slow start is not unprecedented — he had only three homers around this point last season, and his first homer of 2024 also came on April 3 — and Friday’s long ball served as a reminder of the power he displayed in 2025, when he finished with 55 homers.
The homer comes on the heels of Ohtani’s return to the Dodgers’ starting rotation earlier in the week. On Tuesday he threw six scoreless innings in a 4-1 victory over the Cleveland Guardians, reaffirming his dual role as a frontline pitcher and middle-of-the-order threat. That the 29-year-old is contributing on both sides of the ball remains central to Los Angeles’ plans this season.
Friday’s eruption also fits into a broader pattern of uneven starts for several of last year’s top sluggers. Seattle catcher Cal Raleigh, who paced the majors in homers a season ago, had yet to hit one this year and was 4-for-25 at the plate. New York’s Aaron Judge endured a rough Opening Day — striking out four times — but has since begun to find his power stroke, homering multiple times, including on Friday. Kyle Schwarber stands out as an early exception, having opened the season with a two-run homer on Opening Day.
With Major League Baseball’s regular season beginning later than usual after the World Baseball Classic, teams are still settling into rhythms after only seven games for many clubs. For Ohtani and other established power hitters, a single long ball can mark a turning point; for the Dodgers, Friday’s sequence of homers showcased the kind of middle-order firepower that can carry them through the long grind of the season.