In 2021, Shohei Ohtani delivered a historic season.

As a pitcher, he went 9–2 with a 3.18 ERA and 156 strikeouts.
As a hitter, he posted a .257 batting average with 46 home runs and 100 RBIs.

It was an extraordinary performance—one that earned him the American League MVP.

Just how remarkable it was became even clearer after the season, when MLB awarded him the Commissioner’s Historic Achievement Award, a rare honor not given since 2014.

Commissioner Rob Manfred explained the decision:

“To have a player accomplish this much in a single season and do nothing to recognize it would be a great mistake.”

In other words, Ohtani’s performance was not just impressive—it was unprecedented.

And yet, when asked about his numbers, Ohtani responded without hesitation:

“I consider this year’s numbers to be the bare minimum.”

What everyone else saw as the pinnacle of achievement, he saw as the baseline.

Not a peak—

but a standard.

When a reporter pushed back, suggesting he might be overstating it, Ohtani clarified his thinking:

“If you’ve done it once, you have to be able to do it again.”

Angels GM Perry Minasian reportedly smiled and simply said, “Amen.”

And Ohtani proved it.

From 2022 through 2024, he continued to perform at an MVP level—again and again.

Source

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

Sho-Time: The Man Who Changed 120 Years of MLB History, p.346