Special Round-Table Discussion] Former Major Leaguer Ryota Igarashi and baseball critics give their honest predictions for Shohei Ohtani’s performance this year!
The perfect revival of the “two-faced” player will produce unprecedented records!
Shohei Ohtani, 31, of the Dodgers, who has continued to evolve beyond the norm, will be making his second WBC appearance this year and entering his ninth season in the majors. What kind of results will the two-sport athlete achieve in the 2014 season? Former Major Leaguers Ryota Igarashi, Keiichi Yabu, and Nachi Tomonari, a Major League Baseball critic and sportswriter, engaged in a heated discussion.
Igarashi: Last year was another season in which Otani betrayed us in a good way. What surprised me was the content of his pitching from his return to pitching in June to the postseason in October. I knew he had come back as an improved pitcher.
Tomonari He pitched 47 innings in 14 appearances and struck out 62, far more than his pitching numbers. The numbers show that he has made an amazing comeback.
Yabu: Both Igarashi and I had elbow injuries, but to go 100 mph in a comeback game is hard to believe that we are the same person (laughs). (laughs) Moreover, his control has improved, hasn’t it? I guess that proves that he studied a lot of details during his rehabilitation period.
Igarashi: For major league pitchers, the usual route is to make a minor league adjustment and then return to the mound, like Akinori Sasaki (24) did, but last year, Otani’s rehab appearance was on a major league mound. It was an “exceptional adjustment” that only he was allowed to make.
Tomonari Last August, in his 11th start after returning to pitching, he won for the first time in 749 days, and he also became the first winning pitcher in the post-season. I think it is fair to say that he has made a complete comeback as a pitcher.
Igarashi: Compared to when I was injured in ’23, my form has simply become more balanced and stable, and my straight ball rotation has become more efficient, so I am striking out more often with my straight ball.
I can compete in the strike zone, and I can push with a straight ball, which has reduced the number of walks. Furthermore, after turning 30 years old, I broke my own record high velocity in the majors. If I can throw my evolved straight ball and my highly perfected breaking ball as well as I did last year, I have no doubt that my performance will continue to improve this season.
The risk of failure or the title of world number one…Which does Shohei Otani value more?
Tomonari: In the 2011 WBC, you led Japan to the world championship by pitching and hitting.
Yabu: I am against the idea of competing in a two-sport event. It is still fresh in my mind that I broke my elbow after the 23rd WBC. Furthermore, unlike when I was with the Angels, the Dodgers have to play through the postseason in October, so I think they need to be very cautious.
Igarashi: I think there is a possibility that I could pitch. Yes, the risk of failure is a concern, but Ohtani is a pitcher who made adjustments to his game last year, and the major league season will begin immediately after the WBC, so if he wants to be in peak condition for the start of the season, he could use the WBC as an adjustment pitch. I think the same is true for Yoshinobu Yamamoto (27).
Tomonari: I also have a strong desire for him to concentrate on being a hitter in the WBC, but he is a player who is more determined than anyone else to be the world’s No. 1, so I think it is possible for him to pitch in the WBC, depending on how it goes. However, even if he pitches, there will likely be restrictions such as limited to the final round or limited to relief.
Igarashi: Nevertheless, Otani is more of a hitter than a pitcher in this tournament. It is very important to have a player who can hit long balls in international competitions, and since he can create chances and score runs, as he is the No. 1 hitter for the Dodgers, he is a threat to opponents just by being included in the batting lineup.
From the January 23, 2026 issue of FRIDAY
PHOTO： AFLO