In Japanese baseball culture, winning at Koshien carries legendary weight. Even in the professional ranks, former Koshien champions are often viewed differently.
As a high school pitcher, Shohei Ohtani was as highly regarded as Shintaro Fujinami of Osaka Toin. Fujinami won consecutive national championships. Ohtani lost in the first round — twice.
He could throw harder than almost anyone.
But he couldn’t win when it mattered most.
Even after turning professional, championships did not come immediately. In his third season — the year he won the pitching Triple Crown — he was pulled early in a crucial Climax Series game against Lotte.
That loss lingered.
Before the Premier 12 tournament, he wrestled with doubt.
“Why can’t I win in big moments? Why do I struggle when it matters most?”
He understood something important: momentum is real. Not mystical — but psychological.
If he failed again, the narrative would deepen.
If he succeeded, something inside would shift.
That crossroads mattered.
In the Premier 12 semifinal against Korea, Ohtani delivered seven scoreless innings, allowed just one hit, and struck out eleven.
It became a turning point.
The following year, he led the Fighters to a Japan Series title and won league MVP.
For Ohtani, defeat is never just a loss.
It is a fork in the road.
You either spiral — or you break through.
And breaking through changes everything.
Source
This quote comes from a Japanese book published in Japan and is not currently available in English.
Shohei Ohtani: Baseball Chronicle I (Japan Edition 2013–2018), p.198