Was Ohtani’s 50/50 Night the Greatest Single-Game Performance Ever?

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On Friday in Miami, Shohei Ohtani etched his name into baseball history when he reached 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in the same game. But that was just the milestone facet of the game.

“That has to be the greatest baseball game of all time,” teammate Gavin Lux said after Ohtani’s 6-for-6 performance led the Dodgers to a 20-4 thumping of the Marlins.

He may be correct. According to a Game Score formula devised here at Baseball Egg, Ohtani had the best single game ever by a batter, since at least 1920, when RBI became an official statistic. And considering he had three homers in Friday’s game, it’s unlikely any batter ever surpassed his amazing performance before 1920.

Best Game in MLB History by a Batter

We checked every MLB game since 1900, and added RUNS, RBI, STOLEN BASES, and TOTAL BASES. Every player with a total game score of 25 is listed in the table below:

NAMEDATERUNSRBISBTBTOTAL
Shohei Ohtani2024-09-1941021733
Shawn Green2002-05-236701932
Mark Whiten1993-09-07 (2)41201632
Scooter Gennett2017-06-0641001731
Gil Hodges1950-08-315901731
Anthony Rendon2017-04-3051001631
Joe Adcock1954-07-315701830
Josh Hamilton2012-05-084801830
Fred Lynn1975-06-1841001630
Walker Cooper1949-07-0651001530
Tony Lazzeri1936-05-2441101530
Mike Schmidt1976-04-174801729
Adolis García2023-04-225801629
Jimmie Foxx1932-07-104801628
Willie Mays1961-04-304801628
Yoenis Céspedes2015-08-215711528
Norm Zauchin1955-05-2741001428
Jim Bottomley1924-09-1631201328
Edgardo Alfonzo1999-08-306501627
Matt Carpenter2018-07-204701627
Rocky Colavito1959-06-105601627
Alex Dickerson2020-09-015601627
Pat Seerey1948-07-18 (1)4701627
Lonnie Chisenhall2014-06-093901527
Pat Seerey1945-07-134801527
Willie Stargell1968-05-224711527
Carl Reynolds1930-07-02 (2)4811427
Phil Weintraub1944-04-30 (1)51101127
Kris Bryant2016-06-274601626
Carlos Delgado2003-09-254601626
Lou Gehrig1932-06-034601626
Bob Horner1986-07-064601626
Chuck Klein1936-07-104601626
J.D. Martinez2017-09-044601626
Shea Hillenbrand2003-07-074701526
Jackie Bradley Jr.2015-08-155701426
Erubiel Durazo2002-05-173901426
Ralph Kiner1950-06-254801426
Álex Rodríguez2005-04-2631001326
Roy Howell1977-09-104901326
Johnny Rizzo1939-05-30 (2)4901326
Adam Duvall2020-09-095901226
Jim Tabor1939-07-04 (2)5901226
Ty Cobb1925-05-054501625
Les Bell1928-06-024601525
Kyle Schwarber2024-09-034601525
Dave Winfield1991-04-134601525
Nolan Arenado2017-07-194701425
Harold Baines1991-05-074701425
José Canseco1994-06-133801425
Jeff Cirillo2000-06-285601425
Joe DiMaggio1937-07-094701425
George Mitterwald1974-04-173801425
Freddie Patek1980-06-204701425
Willie Stargell1970-08-015601425
Smoky Burgess1955-07-293901325
Eddie Murray1985-08-263901325
Garret Anderson2007-08-2131001225
Nomar Garciaparra1999-05-1031001225
Mark Reynolds2018-07-0731001225
Edwin Encarnación2015-08-294901225

Ohtani’s Game Score of 33 is the best ever, eclipsing the previous record of 32 held jointly by Shawn Green (also for the Dodgers, in 2002), and Mark Whiten for the Cardinals in 1993. Both Whiten and Green blasted four homers in their big games.

As Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic pointed out, no player in baseball history had ever stolen multiple bases and also hit three homers in a game until Ohtani did it.

The fact that Ohtani had his career game on the night when he reached the 50 HR and 50 SB marks, is all the more amazing.

But Ohtani is so amazing: how can we know Friday’s performance was even his “career game?” What if Shohei did something similar on a night when he pitched and got the win? There’s really no one who compares to Ohtani. Not even Babe Ruth ever had a game like the Dodger star did on Friday in Miami. It also came on the night that the Dodgers clinched a postseason spot.

Batters with 3 Home Runs AND 6 Hits in the Same Game

Ohtani was 6-for-6 on Friday. He had three homers, two doubles, and a single. He was thrown out trying to stretch his second double. If he had been successful, Ohtani could have had a cycle. It’s the only thing that went wrong for the Japanese star on his incredible night.

Ohtani is only the seventh player to have six hits AND at least three home runs in the same game. The complete list contains some legendary baseball names:

It’s worth noting that when Cobb had his big game it came after he promised news reporters that he would do it. Sound impossible? It’s true. On May 5, 1925, Cobb told assembled reporters before a game against the Browns, “Today for the first time, I will try to hit home run.” In the days leading up to that game. the Detroit star had grown tired of hearing about the slugging exploits of Babe Ruth. For years, Cobb bristled at the attention Ruth received for hitting home runs. To Cobb, baseball was an art, and the science of hitting required smarts, not brawn. Ruth, Cobb felt, was nothing more than a “big oaf swinging for the fences.”

On May 5, at Sportsman’s Park in St. Louis, Cobb hit three home runs over the right field fence. In a later trip to the plate, Ty blasted a ball that slammed into the wall in right, only a few feet from being a fourth homer. He also had two singles. The next day, the 38-year old Cobb hit two more home runs, still wishing to show off his power.

“I can hit home runs,” Ty told reporters after his five-homers-in-two-days performance. “but now I will go back to smart hitting.”

Ohtani doesn’t need to get any smarter. He doesn’t need to change a thing. He’s baseball’s biggest star. He’s the best slugger and best hitter in the game. He may also be one of the five or ten best pitchers. Next month, he’ll finally play in the postseason. He probably won’t have a single game as great as the one we saw on Friday. But, with his talent, who knows?

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Dan Holmes

Dan Holmes

Dan Holmes is the author of three books about baseball, including Ty Cobb: A Biography. He previously worked for the National Baseball Hall of Fame, and Major League Baseball Advanced Media. He lives in Michigan where he writes, runs, and enjoys a good orange soda now and again.

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