Why Shohei Ohtani Lost First Inside-the-Park HR vs. Angels

Los Angeles Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani had a controversial and confusing play on Saturday during the Dodgers’ rout against the Los Angeles Angels. Ohtani’s bat, for a good stretch of the season, has been talked about for all the wrong reasons , enduring the biggest slump as a Dodger. However, as most things in baseball do, he has started to level out, and the Japanese star is swinging the bat better and better each game.

Against his former team, the Angels, Ohtani had one of the best performances of the season, and certainly the best in recent memory. May 16, 2026; Anaheim, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers two-way player Shohei Ohtani (17) looks on in the dugout after scoring a run during the eighth inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images At the top of the eighth inning, Shohei Ohtani had a nice pullside ball bounce and hit the netting, and then bounced back onto the field.

To Ohtani’s credit, he did not stop at second base and kept running to third, where he hesitated but kept on running to home plate, ending up safe for what looked like an inside-the-park home run. MLB has taken away what would have been Shohei Ohtani's first inside-the-park home run. The play has been officially ruled a triple and an error.

This is Shohei Ohtani's first triple of the season. pic. twitter.