There is a saying:

“It takes a long time to build trust, but only a moment to lose it.”

This applies not only to businesses, where reputation and brand value take years to establish, yet can collapse instantly due to a single mistake—but also to the world of sports.

No matter how outstanding a player performs in a single game—or even a few games—

that alone is not enough to earn true trust.

It is only through consistent performance over months and years

that a player becomes someone others can rely on—

someone teammates trust, and someone fans believe can lead their team to victory.

In 2021, amid growing doubts about whether he could continue as a two-way player, Shohei Ohtani delivered a remarkable season.

He won 9 games as a pitcher and hit 46 home runs as a batter,

ultimately earning the league MVP award.

It was a season that proved, beyond question, the legitimacy of Ohtani as a two-way player.

And yet, he never became complacent.

Instead, he focused on doing everything he could—

pitch by pitch,

at-bat by at-bat,

game by game.

His goal was simple:

to make people feel that

“when Shohei is playing, the team has a better chance to win.”

By continuing to perform at an MVP level over the following years,

Ohtani has built a level of trust that is now unshakable.

Source

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

Shohei Ohtani Report, p.86