The Los Angeles Dodgers and fans at loanDepot Park got a proper celebration Thursday night as Shohei Ohtani scored a major run in MLB history, all thanks to veteran umpire Dan Iassonga.
Ohtani, of course, became the first player in MLB history to amass at least 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a single season when he hit his second of three homers in the seventh inning of the Dodgers’ 20-4 victory over the Miami Marlins.
As he crossed home plate, crew chief Iassonga dusted off the plate to give Ohtani a few extra moments to celebrate. He also killed time by chatting with the Marlins’ batter, and later ignored a pitch clock violation so the Dodgers could have plenty of time to congratulate their teammate.
Here’s a detail from Ohtani’s 50-50 moment that went largely unnoticed. pic.twitter.com/NpiMyF4THI
— Todd Munson (@themunson) September 20, 2024
Iassonga could have called an automatic strike on the next batter, outfielder Kevin Kiermaier, to advance the game, but he recognized the situation and let Ohtani have his moment.
Good job, blue.
Iassonga is in his 22nd year as an MLB umpire. He has been a full-time major league umpire since 2004 and has worked three World Series in his career, in 2012, 2017 and 2022. And now, the 55-year-old can say he was on the field for one of baseball’s biggest events of the 21st century.
