In the world of sports, success is often attributed to talent. But behind every great achievement lies something far less visible: relentless effort.

Japanese baseball legend Sadaharu Oh, the world’s all-time home run leader, once said:

“Effort always pays off. If it doesn’t, then perhaps it wasn’t true effort yet.”

Most people understand that hard work is necessary for success. Yet many stop short when results do not come quickly. After putting in what feels like “enough” effort, they begin to accept the outcome and move on.

Shohei Ohtani approaches effort differently.

From a young age, he developed a habit of committing fully to whatever goal he set for himself.

According to Hideki Kuriyama, the manager who supported Ohtani’s two-way development with the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, this relentless persistence was one of the reasons he believed Ohtani could succeed in such an unprecedented role.

Ohtani was not simply willing to try difficult things.

He was willing to see them through until the end.

During high school, his pursuit of a 160 km/h fastball demonstrated this mentality. Once he decided that was his goal, he continued working until he achieved it.

Many people can start something.

Far fewer can finish it.

Even fewer can continue doing it every day for years.

For Ohtani, the key is not a single moment of effort but the accumulation of days spent doing everything possible to improve.

That is why he can say with confidence that each day has been used to its fullest in pursuit of results.

Source

This quote comes from a Japanese book published in Japan and is not currently available in English.

Shohei Ohtani: Baseball Youth I — Japan Edition 2013–2018, p.207