Shohei Ohtani cracked. the 50-50 club in style: 6-6, 3 home runs, 10 RBI and 2 stolen bases on September 19, 2024 with a historic performance fitting for a historic milestone.
While the postseason will determine whether Los Angeles achieves its championship-or-bust goal, Ohtani has been everything the Dodgers could have hoped he’d be in the first year of a 10-year, $ 700 million contract.
With a new career high in home runs and RBIs, Ohtani has been one of the most productive hitters in baseball on a team that was hit by key injuries all over the roster. Most importantly, Ohtani has stayed healthy and available while finishing up his recovery from major elbow surgery.
Here’s a look at who’s in the 50-50 club and where Ohtani’s season ranks all-time.
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MLB 50-50 club
Ohtani is the first member of the 50-50 club. No player in MLB history had ever hit 50 home runs and stolen 50 bases in the same season, putting the Dodgers started in uncharted after he hit his 49th and 50th home runs of the year on Thursday.
Ohtani was already the first player to record a 46-46 season, as well as everything above those two marks.
The closest misses before Ohtani can be found in the similarly thin 40/40 club — and they weren’t very close at all.
Alex Rodriguez stole 46 bases in 1998 but still finished eight home runs shy of 50 with 42. Alfonso Soriano hit 46 home runs in 2006, but his 41 stolen bases didn’t seriously threaten the milestone he needed. In 2023, Acuna fell well short of 50 home runs when he finished with 41.
Shohei Ohtani stats
| Games | AVG | HR | RBI | SB | OPS | OPS+ |
| 150 | .293 | 50 | 117 | 51 | .999 | 174 |
50 home runs, 51 stolen bases, and 117 RBI are all career highs for Ohtani, who set career-best marks in batting average, on-base percentage, and OPS in 2023.
Ohtani never stole more than 26 bases in a season before 2024, so his aggressiveness on the basepaths is a newer element of his game. Even last season with the new pickoff rules that helped spark more running, Ohtani stole just 20 bases in 135 games.
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MLB 40-40 club
The 40-40 club is exclusive in itself with only six members, including Ohtani. Here’s the full list:
| Player | Team | Season | HRs | SBs |
| Shohei Ohtani | Dodgers | 2024 | 50 | 51 |
| Ronald Acuna Jr. | Braves | 2023 | 41 | 73 |
| Alfonso Soriano | Nationals | 2006 | 46 | 41 |
| Alex Rodriguez | Mariners | 1998 | 42 | 46 |
| Barry Bonds | Giants | 1996 | 42 | 40 |
| Jose Canseco | Athletics | 1988 | 42 | 40 |
No player in the 40-40 club came especially close to the 50-50 mark before Ohtani.
Ronald Acuna Jr. was the first member of the 40-40 club to have at least 50 in either category, stealing 73 bases last season, but he only finished with 41 home runs. Alfonso Soriano, meanwhile, came the closest to 50 home runs out of the group with 46 in 2006, but he only stole 41 bases.
Ohtani has already created the 48-50 club. Now, he has a chance to make even more history.
Best MLB seasons of all time
The following are both true: Ohtani is having a historic season, and two players in the American League might be having a better season than him.
Using WAR (wins above replacement), that’s undeniable. Aaron Judge and Bobby Witt Jr. are both solidly ahead of Ohtani, who is still the heavy favorite to win his third MVP with competition less stiff in the National League.
Still, 50-50 would be something never done in MLB history — not by Judge, Witt or anyone.
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Here’s a look at the single-season WAR leaders from MLB history and how Ohtani stacks up in 2024.
| Rank | Player | fWAR | Season | Team |
| 1 | Babe Ruth | 14.7 | 1923 | Yankees |
| 2 | Babe Ruth | 13.7 | 1921 | Yankees |
| 3 | Babe Ruth | 13.1 | 1920 | Yankees |
| 4 | Babe Ruth | 12.9 | 1927 | Yankees |
| 5 | Barry Bonds | 12.7 | 2002 | Giants |
| 6 | Barry Bonds | 12.5 | 2001 | Giants |
| 7 | Lou Gehrig | 12.2 | 1927 | Yankees |
| 8 | Babe Ruth | 11.9 | 1924 | Yankees |
| 9 | Rogers Hornsby | 11.8 | 1924 | Cardinals |
| 10 | Barry Bonds | 11.8 | 2004 | Giants |
| 11 | Babe Ruth | 11.8 | 1926 | Yankees |
| 12 | Honus Wagner | 11.8 | 1908 | Pirates |
| 13 | Pedro Martinez | 11.6 | 1999 | Red Sox |
| 14 | Ted Williams | 11.6 | 1946 | Red Sox |
| 15 | Ted Williams | 11.5 | 1942 | Red Sox |
| 16 | Mickey Mantle | 11.5 | 1956 | Yankees |
| 17 | Ty Cobb | 11.5 | 1917 | Tigers |
| 18 | Mickey Mantle | 11.4 | 1957 | Yankees |
| 19 | Jimmie Foxx | 11.3 | 1932 | Athletics |
| 20 | Carl Yastrzemski | 11.1 | 1967 | Red Sox |
As outstanding as Ohtani has been, his season doesn’t rank anywhere near the single-season WAR leaderboard. Ohtani’s fangraphs WAR (fWAR) is 7.0 through Sept. 17, which is actually the best non-pitching WAR of his career but is impacted by his role as a designated hitter. Without any fielding value, it’s tough to crack some of the best seasons of all-time.
Ohtani’s highest career WAR came in 2022, when he posted a combined 9.2 WAR with more than half of the total coming as a pitcher. Ironically, that might end up being the one season from these last four seasons that doesn’t end in an MVP for Ohtani. Why? Because Judge posted an 11.1 WAR in his historic 62-home run campaign, giving one of 29 seasons with an fWAR of at least 11.0 in MLB history.
Through Sept. 17, Judge’s 2023 WAR is 10.2 while Witt’s is 9.9. Judge, Witt and Ohtani are all enjoying ridiculous seasons for different reasons, but only one has a chance to found the 50-50 club.
