Ohtani obliterates the longest HR in MLB this season for No. 30

ANAHEIM -- Two-way sensation Shohei Ohtani reached 30 homers before the calendar turned to July, and he made the most of it with an absolutely epic blast to right field off D-backs lefty Tommy Henry in a 6-2 loss on Friday night at Angel Stadium.

Ohtani’s 15th homer in June left the bat at an astonishing 115.1 mph and traveled a projected 493 feet to right field, according to Statcast measurements. The sixth-inning solo shot was the longest homer in the Majors this season and the longest by Ohtani in his six MLB seasons. His previous long was 470 feet off Royals lefty Kris Bubic in 2021.

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“I hear about all those 500-foot shots from guys in the past, but I don't think I'm ever going to see one,” Angels manager Phil Nevin said. “Because I [don’t think it’s possible] to see one hit farther than the one I saw.

“The calculations before and now are a little different, but I don't think there's a ball that can be hit farther than that one. Just awesome.”

The homer came on a 1-0 slider over the heart of the plate and put the Angels on the board in the sixth inning. The ball landed near the LED ribbon located halfway up the outfield bleachers. It's tied for the 13th-longest homer since Statcast was introduced in 2015. The standard remains a 505-foot blast from Nomar Mazara in 2019. It's also the Angels' longest-hit homer tracked by Statcast, surpassing a 490-footer from Mike Trout on Oct. 5, 2022.

Ohtani also made history in the process, becoming just the fourth player in American League history to hit 15 homers in the month of June. He joined Babe Ruth (1930 Yankees), Bob Johnson (1934 A's) and Roger Maris (1961 Yankees).

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Ohtani already set the club record for homers in any month with his 14th of the month on Thursday. And it's also the second time he has reached 30 homers before the All-Star break, as he had 33 before the 2021 Midsummer Classic. Additionally, he’s the second player with at least 30 homers and 10 stolen bases before July, joining Sammy Sosa in 1998.

“He's in a really good place,” Nevin said. “It's fun to watch. If we get a couple of guys going around him, we’ve seen Mike [Trout] do that the last two days with five hits. When those guys are going, they can carry us. Obviously, it’s going to take everybody. But when those two guys are playing as well as they are, they can pretty much carry this club.”

Ohtani, who was selected as an All-Star for a third straight season after being the leading vote-getter in the AL, had a June for the ages.

Ohtani had a June slash line of .394/.492/.952 with 15 homers, seven doubles, three triples, four stolen bases and 29 RBIs in 27 games. He also made four starts on the mound, posting a 3.26 ERA with 37 strikeouts in 30 1/3 innings.

Ohtani, the AL MVP in 2021 and the runner-up last year, is again the frontrunner this season in his last year of his contract. He’s slashing .310/.396/.674 with 30 homers, 15 doubles, five triples, 11 stolen bases and 67 RBIs in 82 games. And in 16 starts on the mound, he's 7-3 with a 3.02 ERA and 127 strikeouts in 95 1/3 innings.

He leads the Majors in home runs, total bases (213), extra-base hits (50) and is tied for the MLB lead in RBIs and triples. As a pitcher, he ranks first in the Majors in opponent batting average against (.180) and is third in strikeouts.

Ohtani's incredible month helped the Angels to a 14-13 record in June, but they lost three straight to end the month. Right-hander Griffin Canning put the Angels in an early hole against Arizona, allowing a run in the first inning and a grand slam in the second before settling down and getting through six innings.

Canning, who grew up locally as an Angels fan, had just finished his outing and was sitting on the bench when Ohtani hit his majestic blast in the sixth. Canning said it reminded him of Barry Bonds’ memorable blast in Game 2 of the 2002 World Series.

“That was like Barry Bonds territory in the World Series,” Canning said. “It was way back there.”