Shohei Ohtani sets new MLB home run record by Japanese-born player

Shohei Ohtani hit a two-run homer for the Los Angeles Dodgers during the third inning of Sunday's game against the New York Mets at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California. That play scored the first two runs for the home team, but that was not all. The homer took Ohtani's tally to 176 home runs, making him the new record holder for the most home runs hit by a Japanese-born player in Major League Baseball (MLB).

The previous record was held by Hideki Matsui, who did it in 10 seasons between 2003 and 2012. He was a two-time All-Star and won the World Series in 2009 with the New York Yankees as the World Series Most Valuable Player (MVP).

Ohtani is currently in his seventh MLB season and has won many more honors than Matsui, including two American League (AL) MVPs. However, Ohtani has never played in the postseason.

"Honestly, I was just relieved I was able to get it over with," Ohtani said after Sunday's 10-0 win.

"Hideki Matsui was a great ballplayer, a great home run hitter, a world champion," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. "I know that Shohei admired him, so for him to eclipse that mark, it's a big deal. I know whatever kind of mark is ahead of Shohei, he's trying to take them all down."

Ohtani hit Adrian Houser's pitch 423 feet (about 128.9 meters) away at a speed of 110 miles (about 177 kilometers) per hour, deep into the right-field bleachers. The big win on Sunday ended a three-game losing streak for the Dodgers. They lead the National League West with a 13-11 record.

"We just tried a backdoor slider with that and just wasn't able to keep it out [of the strike zone]," Houser said. "You leave a pitch down the middle to him, he's going to put a good swing on it, just like he did."