Shohei Ohtani the first MLB player to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases

(This story was updated to add new information.)

Shohei Ohtani has reached history as a member of the 50/50 club.

MLB players have stolen at least 50 bases in a season almost 500 times. They’ve hit 50 home runs or more 50 times. But no player has put both together in a single season until now.

On Sept. 19, Los Angeles Dodgers' Ohtani, 30, reached the 50/50 club in impressive fashion, stealing his 50th and 51st base and hitting his 49th, 50th and 51st home run vs. the Miami Marlins.

With data provided by Sport's Reference's StatHead Baseball, we look at how Ohtani compares with some of baseball's greats.

A look at those in the elite 50 club

Ohtani's 50+ home runs this season, is the 50th time a player has done so. The chart, below shows how he compares with the others in the 50 home-run club and with the top single-season base stealers with at least 15 home runs.

"50/50 would be an incredible accomplishment," said Sean Forman, president of Sports Reference. "No one has ever done it before in a single season and only two players have ever both hit 50 home runs and stolen 50 bases in any season of their careers, Barry Bonds and Brady Anderson."

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Ohtani joins the leaders in 50+ stolen base club

For a 50/50 milestone that’s been unattainable for so many years, it’s notable that Ohtani who has now reached that goal, and Atlanta Braves’ Ronald Acuña Jr. have been the closest to reach it in back-to-back seasons.

Last season, Acuña stole a whopping 73 bases and hit 41 home runs. While Ohtani won't surpass Acuña's 73 stolen bases, he has already hit more home runs, becoming the first member of the 45/45 club and now 50/50 club.

The Oakland A's Ricky Henderson holds the modern-era, single-season stolen base record with 130 in 1982. He also hit 10 home runs that year. In the list below, Henderson's name appears 13 times among players who have stolen 50 or more bases in a single season.

Ohtani joins leaders in 50+ home run club

Ohtani reached the 50-home run mark Thursday, and now sits atop the list below which ranks the 50 home run club members by their stolen bases.

You have to go back to 2007 to find a player who hit over 50 home runs and had 24 stolen bases: Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees. Before that, you have to go back more than 50 years when Willie Mays of the New York Giants had 51 home runs and 24 stolen bases.

Where Ohtani ranks in power and speed

With three home runs and eight stolen bases since Ohtani's record-breaking game, he has now moved past Acuña's 2023 season according to Baseball Reference's Power-Speed leaders list, which ranks players based on a formula that combines home runs with bases stolen in a single season.