Shohei Ohtani reached a significant milestone in his career by achieving his 1,000th career hit during a game against the St. Louis Cardinals. The Los Angeles Dodgers star made this milestone moment memorable by hitting a two-run home run off Cardinals starter Matthew Liberatore in the bottom of the third inning. This remarkable achievement was complemented by Ohtani's performance on the mound, where he showcased his talents with a strong start during the game.

Ohtani delivered what is regarded as his best pitching performance of the season, striking out eight batters while allowing just one run on two hits over four innings. This marked the first occasion since August 2023 that Ohtani pitched deep into the game, reaching the fourth inning. Notably, he achieved his 1,000 career hits in merely 973 games as a hitter, reinforcing his offensive prowess. In 2025, Ohtani has reached two significant milestones, including becoming the fastest player in MLB history to accumulate at least 250 home runs and 150 stolen bases, accomplishing this feat in just 944 games.

Entering this matchup, Ohtani held the sixth-highest at-bat-per-home-run ratio in MLB history at 13.53, ranking third among active players, trailing only Aaron Judge and Kyle Schwarber. Over a quarter of Ohtani's 1,000 hits have been home runs, totaling 264, while nearly 50 percent of his hits have resulted in extra bases, amounting to 489. Despite some challenges faced by the Dodgers this season, including injuries and performance issues, Ohtani has remained a reliable contributor, propelling the team to first place in the NL West. As he continues to demonstrate an MVP-caliber season, he finds himself in a competitive race, striving to become only the second player in MLB history to win the MVP award in three consecutive seasons, joining the legendary Barry Bonds.