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"Shohei Ohtani's home run changed everything" - MLB sportscaster claims Dodgers star's dinger against Dylan Cease turned tide against Padres in NLDS

If there was one team in the 2024 postseason that threatened Shohei Ohtani's LA Dodgers winning run, it was their nemesis, the San Diego Padres. The duo who battled it out in the regular season for the division lead found themselves facing each other in the NLDS.

In a moment like this, the Dodgers had their best man for the job. Ohtani struck a three-home run off Padres ace Dylan Cease to help his team win Game 1 7-5. Dodgers sportscaster Jose Mota believed it was a big moment in the context of the postseason, which the Dodgers haven't been able to break through before 2024.

"I'm glad you brought up the Dylan Cease home run—because you cannot deny that every person associated with the Dodgers, when they were facing the Padres down 3–0, was thinking, Oh my God, not again. Padres, October, Division Series," Mota said Sunday on Dodgers Dugout show (15:08 onwards). "They had to get out of that moment. Then came one hit—Shohei Ohtani’s home run—and it changed everything.
"We spent the whole offseason last year talking about where Mookie was, where Freddie was, and where the rest of the offense was. Well, that one hit changed everything. From Mookie to Freddie to Max Muncy to Will Smith, it reminded them, Guys, let’s not forget—we have Shohei now. One swing can make a difference."

Surprisingly, the Padres would send the Dodgers on the brink of elimination by winning Game 3 and taking a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five-game series. The Dodgers rallied back by winning Game 4 and Game 5 to eliminate the Padres and advance to the NLCS round.

There, they beat the New York Mets and finally took down the Yankees in five games to win their eighth World Series.

World Series tag enough for people to forget Shohei Ohtani's struggle in late postseason, says Jose Mota

Shohei Ohtani was lights out this postseason until Game 2 of the World Series, where during a base-stealing attempt, he injured his shoulder. Despite that, Ohtani continued to stay out there, knowing that he may still be able to impact the game.

That stood true. Despite Ohtani only going 1-11 from thereafter, he managed multiple important walks in the crucial juncture of the game, which helped the Dodgers overcome the Yankees challenge.

"I’ll never forget what Aie Gito and Cal Fon told us before the National Championship in 1984: 'When you’re associated with a winner, nobody’s ever going to ask you what you hit that year. But they’ll know you played for a winner, and that’s all that matters,'" Jose Mota said.
"Nobody’s going to care about what Max Muncy did or what Shohei Ohtani did, or Gavin Lux or Will Smith. But they’ll know one thing—these guys were part of a championship. For Shohei Ohtani, this is a learning lesson. Sure, the swing got a little too long at times, and we know he got hurt. But also, understanding the way they pitch to him will be important moving forward."

Mota emphasized the point that winning is all that matters. And when people look back on the 2024 season, they'll find Shohei Ohtani as a winner.

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