MIAMI (AP) — The Los Angeles Dodgers are, as has become a regular pattern, heading to the playoffs.

The Dodgers clinched their 12th consecutive playoff berth on Thursday with a 20-4 defeat of the Miami Marlins on the same night that star player Shohei Ohtani hit three home runs and stole two bases to lead the first player in Major League history with 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a season.

The magic number for the NL West-leading Dodgers to clinch the NL West has dropped to six. They hold a 2 1/2-game lead over the Milwaukee Brewers in their hunt for the No. 2 seed in the NL and a first-round bye in the playoffs. They lead the San Diego Padres by four games in the division.

The New York Yankees and Brewers became the first teams to secure a playoff spot on Wednesday, with the Cleveland Guardians securing a playoff spot earlier on Thursday.

Los Angeles has won at least 90 games in each of the last 11 162-game seasons. The only non-division title the Dodgers have won in that span came in 2021, when they won 107 games to finish one game behind NL West champion San Francisco.

The Dodgers, however, have just one World Series title in that span, winning it all during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.

Ohtani doubled twice, singled and drove in a franchise-best 10 runs on Thursday. He nearly went for the cycle, but was thrown out at third trying to stretch his second double into a triple in the third.

Ohtani, who signed a $700 million, 10-year contract with the Dodgers last December, is headed to the postseason for the first time in his career, a feat he has never accomplished in his six years with the Los Angeles Angels.

“I changed teams this year and my goal has always been to make the playoffs,” Ohtani said through an interpreter. “It’s something I’ve really worked hard on and I’m really happy we made it.”

His teammate Mookie Betts added: “Then we’ll see the best of Shohei, I think, when he gets into that atmosphere.”

Thursday’s postgame celebration in the clubhouse was brief. After a quick champagne toast, the Dodgers turned their attention to what comes next: a trip back to Los Angeles, where they’ll host Colorado on Friday.

“We’ve got to get West,” manager Dave Roberts said. “And so just understanding that what we’re trying to play for, teams that are on our tail, we’ve got a lot of work to do.”

The Dodgers play their final home game against the Rockies and Padres in a three-game series, then close the season with a three-game series in Colorado.

“The goal is to win the last game in October,” Roberts said, “but you still have to enjoy the moments. And it’s been a grind of a season, with a lot of challenges. When something like that happens tonight, you have to enjoy it.”

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