For the first time since June 17, MLB has witnessed a changing of the guards atop the home run leaderboard, as Braves All-Star Matt Olson ended Shohei Ohtani’s reign as king on Saturday afternoon.
With a two-homer outing against the Mets, Olson logged his 41st and 42nd HRs of the season in a 21–3 drubbing on the road, breaking a tie with Ohtani (40) to leap past the Angels superstar as the league leader.
The first of Olson’s moonshots came on a three-run, 422-foot bomb in the top of the sixth inning to put Atlanta up, 6–0. He went on to notch his second with a 357-foot solo shot in the eighth, which also gave him an MLB-leading 105 RBI on the year.
41!
Matt Olson has more home runs than anyone else in baseball. pic.twitter.com/OIn7402ifp
— MLB (@MLB) August 12, 2023
Raking, even in the rain.
Matt Olson leads MLB with 42 HR and 105 RBI! pic.twitter.com/YLiQNMmkVk
— MLB (@MLB) August 12, 2023
In addition to the distinction of passing Ohtani, Olson’s big day came in the midst of another strong showing for the Braves (74–41) as the NL East leader looks to secure its third-straight division title.
With 47 games left on the schedule, Olson, who has 20 homers in 42 day games, will likely have to stay hot if he wants to stay ahead of Ohtani, who now sits as the hunted rather than the hunter.
Needless to say, all eyes will be on the NL and AL MVP candidates down the stretch, with Olson looking to add to his lead in Game 3 of the Braves-Mets series Saturday night, and Ohtani and the Angels (58–59) facing the Astros.
