A night earlier, he was stranded in the on-deck circle by a stunning triple play, ending the Dodgers’ hopes for the division title.

On a raucous Wednesday night at Dodger Stadium, Shohei Ohtani finally stepped to bat.

And promptly crushed all but the last bits of breath from the San Diego Padres.

Triple plays, shriple plays and memories of the night before’s incredible ending were overshadowed by the giant Ohtani, whose one graceful walk followed by two deafening hits led the Dodgers to a 4-3 victory over the Padres and put them on the brink of their 11th National League West championship in 12 years.

The magic number is now two and that is certainly achievable in the final game of the regular season in Chavez Ravine on Thursday night.

If the Dodgers and starter Walker Buehler can once again rout the pesky Padres, the game will end with a dog pile on the mound and champagne in the clubhouse. If the Padres and Joe Musgrove survive, the Dodgers will have to wait until the almost certain decision this weekend in Denver against the dreadful Rockies.

Either way, Wednesday’s win all but secured them the impressive title and an important bye week.

Either way, you can bet Ohtani is right in the thick of it.

Read more: Plaschke: Nothing 50-50 about it. Shohei Ohtani should be unanimous NL MVP

He’s a one-man rally. He’s a one-man blowout. He’s a one-man box score. Let’s face it, in some ways he’s been a one-man team lately.

He’s 17-for-his-last-24. He’s got 15 RBIs in his last six games. He’s screaming line drives and bellowing celebratory gestures. His hands are pointing to the sky and his fists are waving through the night and a smile as big as his hacks.

“He’s the best player in baseball, you never think he’s going to go out,” teammate Max Muncy said, his eyes still wide open Wednesday night. “Every time he steps in the box, you expect something incredible. He doesn’t disappoint very often.”

The only way to stop him seems to be to not let him get in that box, and that’s exactly what happened less than 24 hours ago.

Read more: Triple play ends game as weak Dodgers lose to surging Padres

In the ninth inning Tuesday night, Ohtani stood menacingly in the on-deck circle, ready to deliver a decisive blow, when the Padres stranded him there with a game-clinching triple play to secure a 4-2 victory, moving just two games behind the Dodgers with four games remaining.

Stunned silence. Questions galore. Criticism rippling. Panic everywhere.

Early Wednesday night, Ohtani, the leadoff hitter, stepped out of the circle and into the batting box, and everything changed.

He apparently shocked the scrutiny of Padres starter Dylan Cease, who walked him four times. Ohtani then took second on a wild pitch and eventually scored the Dodgers’ first run on Teoscar Hernández’s two-out single.

Yeah, that Ohtani is so good, he can change the game, even with the bat on his shoulder.

“Special,” Dodgers pitcher Jack Flaherty said. “Unbelievable.”

It got better. With two outs in the fourth inning of a tie game, Ohtani hit an RBI double into the right-field corner and, for the first of several moments tonight, the stadium shook.

“You just want to get him out there with a couple guys on base, and you feel like you’re in a good spot,” said Flaherty, who was rescued by Ohtani after giving up three runs in a bumpy five innings.

The savior wasn’t done yet. Two innings later, with the score tied again, Ohtani singled to right to score the go-ahead and ultimately winning run.

Standing on first base, he shouted toward the dugout and gestured wildly with his giant arms. This was the visibly passionate Ohtani you rarely see. This was Ohtani on the threshold of October.

“You see the emotion that you never see and you’ve seen it this past week,” Manager Dave Roberts said. “He’s getting a taste of the postseason and he understands how important these games are.”

Fans aren’t the only ones getting inspired. On the Dodger bench, his teammates are partying with him.

“We have a lot of guys here with a lot of postseason experience, that hasn’t gone unnoticed, but when you have guys that haven’t been there yet and you see the emotion come out of them, it definitely gives you energy,” Muncy said.

Ohtani had calmed down considerably afterward, holding his post-match press conference with his cap on backwards and a relaxed smile.

I asked him if he ever felt so good on the record. What a stupid question. Of course he did.

“I think I’ve had the feeling (before),” he said in Japanese. “But as the years have gone by, I think my hitting technique has improved, as has my physical condition. I think my power has gradually taken shape.”

He was asked if his first pennant race had energized him. He admitted the delightfully obvious: as the games got bigger, his concentration increased.

“There is quite a bit,” he said. “I think the excitement of the fans and the team spirit are high. I think those are ingredients to increase the focus.”

Finally, he was asked if he was excited about the idea of ​​spraying champagne for the first time in his seven-year Major League career.

“That’s why we’ve worked so hard so far,” he said. “I think it would be special if we could do that tomorrow in a home game.”

However they do it, we’re betting they won’t do it without their rarest, most unique, never-before-seen baseball player.

Shohei Ohtani, a triple play with one man.

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This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.