When Shohei Ohtani finally clinched a postseason berth with the Dodgers in 2024, he not only achieved MLB’s first-ever “50–50” season, but also brought an end to another painful record:
865 regular-season games played without ever reaching the postseason — the longest active streak in Major League Baseball at the time.
It was a frustrating distinction.
During those years, Ohtani had already won two MVP awards, which only highlighted how difficult it had been for the Angels to become a winning team.
For Ohtani, the Angels were still a deeply meaningful organization.
They were the team that gave him the opportunity to pursue his two-way career in Major League Baseball, and he remained grateful for that.
At the same time, however, Ohtani’s vision of being a two-way player was never simply about personal numbers.
His goal was always to pitch, hit, run, and ultimately help his team win.
And with the Angels, that goal often remained out of reach.
Before a two-game series against his former team in September 2024, Ohtani reflected on those years by saying:
“Sometimes I wonder if the team’s results might have been better if I had been able to contribute at my absolute maximum.”
From an outside perspective, winning two MVP awards already seemed like more than enough contribution.
But Ohtani held himself to a different standard.
Late in his rookie season, he suffered ligament damage in his right elbow and eventually underwent Tommy John surgery.
For the following two seasons, he was unable to pitch consistently, and even his batting performance was affected at times.
As the centerpiece of the franchise, Ohtani carried a strong sense of responsibility.
No matter how extraordinary his individual accomplishments were, he continued to judge himself by one thing above all else:
whether he had truly done everything possible to help his team win.
Source
This quote comes from a Japanese book published in Japan and is not currently available in English.
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