The Origin of a Phenomenon Shohei Ohtani Through a Reporter’s Eyes

The only places he went besides the stadium and dorm

Ohtani, 31, is in outstanding form again this season both as a hitter and a pitcher, even surpassing the Japanese player record of 43 consecutive games reaching base held by Ichiro Suzuki. His otherworldly performances, reported day after day, continue to captivate fans around the globe.

However, these overwhelming results were not built overnight.

When Ohtani joined the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters in 2013, large numbers of media gathered daily at the team dormitory in Kamagaya, Chiba. Yet their expectations were, in a good way, betrayed.

A reporter who closely followed him at the time reveals the unusual aura young Ohtani gave off, along with the extreme self-discipline behind it.

“During the three years after he joined the team, I covered Ohtani many times, but he was only seen outside the dorm and the stadium on three occasions. Twice he went to a hair salon, and once he went out for yakiniku with teammates. He went out so rarely that the team’s PR staff told us, ‘No matter how long you wait, it’s pointless. He has absolutely no interest in anything other than baseball.’”

Ohtani’s stoicism also stood out even among top players on the national team.

At a 2016 gathering held as a send-off for the World Baseball Classic, all the players attended a yakiniku party. But as soon as the first round ended, Ohtani alone immediately returned to the team hotel without a second glance.

He minimized fun and social obligations, maintaining perfect control over his conditioning. That mindset was already fully formed during his time with Nippon-Ham.

His current historic surge in Major League Baseball is anything but a coincidence. The extreme self-discipline he maintained from a young age, along with the solitary effort of a true seeker, appears to have shaped the monster that is Shohei Ohtani today.

On YouTube, FRIDAY Digital’s “Entertainment Reporters Channel” features active journalists discussing “Ohtani, Sakamoto, Kiyohara Reporters Saw It! The Real Faces of Pro Baseball Players Off the Field,” revealing the off-field sides of players locked in intense battles on the diamond.