Author: Yuta Ishida
Shohei Ohtani:
Number of pages: 286
Size: Approximately 20cm long
[Abstract]
"I definitely want to be number one in the world and be the best player."
All of the exclusive interviews that have been published in the sports magazine "Number" over the past seven years since Ohtani joined the majors.
He talks about the crisis of being a two-way player, the truth behind his right elbow surgery, his thoughts on the WBC, joining the Dodgers, and even his marriage.

[table of contents]
Prologue: The Story of a Home Run

Baseball 2018 Rookie of the Year
Because there are too many things I want to do
The important thing is, is it fun?

Baseball 2019: A Year of Return and Another Absence
The booing was a refreshing experience
Declaring war on common sense
If I didn't chase
It should naturally rise
"Doing the right thing" is better than "doing fun"
It was the most frustrating season

Baseball's 2020 season begins with the coronavirus pandemic and incomplete results
The winner is to walk towards becoming the absolute best in the world
Feeling happy with raw egg on rice
What was happening to my right arm
Overdoing it is just right

Baseball 2021 Shonen Season MVP
If you give it your all, the numbers will remain
Always on to new places
Aiming to be a two-way player who can lead his team to victory

Baseball 2022: First double-digit wins and home runs in 104 years
The first peak will come this year
There is no one or the other

Baseball 2023 WBC, home run king, MVP
For Japanese baseball 30 years from now
The day a legend was born

Baseball 2024: The Year of the Dodgers
Talking about married life
When you have to make a big decision

Epilogue: The desire brought by the WBC victory

[Message from the author]
This book is a record of one-on-one interviews with Shohei Ohtani over a period of seven years, starting from 2018 when he joined the Los Angeles Angels.
I have vacuum-packed not only the words, but also the breathing, facial expressions, the atmosphere on set, and the tension, all of these things, and depicted them in a fresh way so that you can read them.
Although it has been said that "it is impossible to be a two-way player," Ohtani has overcome many difficulties since turning professional without setting limits for himself.
So even when he stepped onto the new stage of Major League Baseball, I never doubted his success, and I thought it would be great if he could one day become a pitcher as the number four batter.
However, he easily overcame such fantasies, achieving double-digit wins and double-digit home runs, winning the MVP twice, and becoming the home run king, and now even the unprecedented feat of 20 wins and 50 home runs in a single season is no longer a dream.
"Baseball Shounen" has grown into an adult without losing that spirit.
From Shohei Ohtani's words, you can sense the determination and ingenuity of an athlete who continues to overcome the huge obstacles that stand before him.

[Author introduction]
Yuuta Ishida
Baseball journalist.
Born in Aichi Prefecture in 1964.
After graduating from the Faculty of Letters at Aoyama Gakuin University, he joined NHK and served as director of "Sunday Sports" and other programs.
In 1992, he became a freelancer and began writing as well as writing and directing sports programs.
(This information was available at the time this book was published.)