Shohei Ohtani's 17th hit of the season ends the Dodgers' 2-game losing streak

Shohei Ohtani. (AP)

[Sports Center/Comprehensive Report] Dodgers Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani hit a home run in the first inning today, his 17th of the season, helping the team defeat the Twins 2:1, ending their two-game losing streak.

Shohei Ohtani served as the leadoff DH. He caught Zebby Matthews' change-up pitch in red in the first at-bat. He swung the stick out of the right field and hit the ball with an initial speed of 112.8 miles, a flight distance of 414 feet, and an elevation angle of 25 degrees.

This is Shohei Ohtani's seventh home run this month, showing his reputation as "June Madness". He has accumulated 297 home runs in the major leagues in his career, and is "M3" away from the 300 home run milestone.

Ohtani hit an infield groundout in the next three at-bats. In the ninth inning, he came on again and was knocked out. He had one hit in four at-bats, and his batting average after the game was 0.296.

After the Dodgers' starting pitcher Will Klein was bombarded by Byron Buxton in the bottom half of the first inning, the defending team didn't allow another run. Eric Lauer pitched in six scoreless innings, and Kyle Hurt and Tanner Scott each pitched one inning to keep scoreless, joining forces to seal off the Twins.

Dodger MVP Freddie Freeman hit a big center field hit for 6, his 13th of the season, helping the team lead the score. The Dodgers also had the last laugh and won 2:1, becoming the first 50-win team this season.