Ohtani scores on live ball off protective netting as Dodgers beat Angels 15-2

Shohei Ohtani’s hard-running baserunning turned a near-home run into an inside-the-park “Little League” scoring play, helping the Los Angeles Dodgers defeat the Los Angeles Angels 15-2 at Angel Stadium on Saturday night.

In the eighth inning, Ohtani hit a line drive down the right-field line that appeared headed into foul territory near the corner, but it bounced off recently installed protective netting along the right-field foul-line area. Rather than going out of play, the ball ricocheted back onto the field as Ohtani sprinted around the bases. He later slid across the plate with the Angels playing catch-up after a brief attempt to make the ball dead.

“That’s why I just kept running,” Ohtani said in a postgame interview through an interpreter.

The Angels appealed the ruling after the score, with manager Kurt Suzuki challenging the play following the initial call. Suzuki later said the team had wondered whether a fan might have touched the ball from behind the screen. After video review, umpires upheld that the ball remained live. The ruling leaned on a universal MLB ground rule stating that a live ball that strikes protective netting set on the field facing a wall or railing...