DENVER (AP) — Shohei Ohtani finished 1-for-4 and fell short in his bid to become the first NL Triple Crown winner since 1937 by stealing his 59th base to help the Dodgers of Los Angeles to beat the Los Angeles 2-1 on Sunday Rockies of Colorado in Charlie Blackmon’s last duel.
Ohtani finished the regular season leading the NL in home runs (54) and RBIs (130), but his .310 batting average was below San Diego’s Luis Arráez (.314).
As a member of the 50-50 club, Ohtani stole his 59th base in the eighth inning.
The last winner of the NL Triple Crown was St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Joe Medwick in 1937. In the American League, Venezuelan Miguel Cabrera won it in 2012.
Evan Phillips (5-1) took the win and Edgardo Henriquez closed the ninth with his first save to become one of 14 pitchers for the Dodgers this year with a save.
For the Dodgersthe Dominican Teoscar Hernández 4-2. Puerto Rican Kiké Hernández 4-0. Cuban Andy Pagés 3-0.
For the RockiesVenezuelan Ezequiel Tovar 4-0.
