Shohei Ohtani is not the most accessible star in sports. The fact that his first language is Japanese and that he speaks through an interpreter only adds to his mystique. When reaching base nine times with two home runs isn’t even your best game of the postseason, you forget he’s human.

But he is. He’s a husband, a father, and the adoring owner of a golden retriever named Decoy. Amid all the breakdowns on Shohei’s workload — how many innings, how many swings, how many records he might chase next — you start to wonder about something else entirely.

Where does the dad of the GOAT watch from?
Where is his dugout — the one between two continents?

This week, we found out.

After Shohei and the Dodgers won their second straight World Series, his father, Toru Ohtani — a former outfielder and longtime youth coach in Iwate Prefecture — shared an open letter through Sponichi. It wasn’t about fame or trophies. It was about what it’s like to love someone the world keeps asking more from.

“Shohei, congratulations on winning the World Series for the second straight year! More than anything, I’m happiest that you were able to stay healthy all year.”

Toru also reminded readers that Shohei is now 31 years old — in his prime, and still finding new ways to astonish the world. That one quiet line says everything: the pride of a father watching his son’s greatness in real time, aware of both how fleeting it is and how miraculous it’s been.

He reflected on Game 4 of the League Championship Series against Milwaukee — three home runs, ten strikeouts, a Series MVP — and admitted what every parent feels when success starts to scare you.

“Once you do something like that, people start saying, ‘Do it again next time,’ and as a parent, that’s a little scary.”

Toru and Shohei’s mother, Kayoko, still can’t watch live when their son pitches. They record the games, replay them later, and talk through “this and that.” She cheers. He critiques. It’s love told through notes and replays.

In August, Toru brought his Kanegasaki Little Senior team from Oshu City to Los Angeles for the Torrance Friendship Games — and during that trip, he met Shohei and Mamiko at Dodger Stadium and held his grandchild for the first time.

“I was so happy. I remember saying, ‘Wow, so big already!’ Adorable — I’m really looking forward to watching him grow.”

That same visit, Toru wrote a short report for Sponichi describing the experience of watching his son pitch and homer in person with his youth team. He called Shohei’s performance “close to perfect,” adding:

“He struck out many batters, but what made me happiest was that he didn’t walk anyone and stayed consistent.”

In his open letter months later, Toru looked ahead. If Shohei ever stops pitching, he believes his son could still thrive as an outfielder — the same position Toru once played — and maybe someday manage a team of his own.

“I even think it wouldn’t be a bad idea for him to become a Major League manager.”

That wasn’t pressure. It was belief — the kind that passes quietly between generations of ballplayers and parents who never stop coaching.

Too many parents never live long enough to see their children and grandchildren at their best.

Toru has — more than once.

And he knows what’s worth holding onto — not the records, not the parades, but a blue true dream of sky and a field of green, his son at the plate and on the mound, his grandchildren in his arms — all healthy, all in their prime.

大谷翔平の父・徹さんによる公開書簡（日本語原文）

（スポニチアネックス 2025年11月3日）

翔平、2年連続ワールドシリーズ制覇おめでとう！本格的な投手復帰は来年からでいいだろうと思っていましたが、まさかシーズン終盤にかけてここまで投げるとは思っていませんでした。何より健康にシーズンを通せたことが一番うれしく思っています。

10月17日のブルワーズとのリーグ優勝決定シリーズ第4戦では、打者として3本塁打、投手として10奪三振でシリーズMVPを獲りましたね。試合後に翔平も言っていましたが、出来過ぎです。あれを一度やってしまうと、また「次もやってほしい」となり、親としては少し怖いな、少しかわいそうだなと思って見ていました。

正直に言うと、私も妻の加代子も翔平が投げる時はリアルタイムで見ていません。夜、自宅に帰ってから録画を見て「ああだ、こうだ」と言うのが日課です。打者の時は見られますが、勝敗に強く関わる投手の時は子供の頃から落ち着きません。翔平が本塁打を打つと、妻は「立派だ」「よくやった」と言いますが、私はどうしても文句を言ってしまいます。「高めのボール球を本塁打にしてしまったか。次は空振りするな」なんて。結果が良くても心配が先に立ってしまうんですよね。

今年のポストシーズンは予定が合わず現地観戦することができませんでしたが、8月に監督をしている金ケ崎リトルシニアの子供たちを連れてロサンゼルスに行った時に、翔平と真美子さんに会い、球場で初めて孫を抱っこすることができました。うれしかったですね。「大きいね！」とびっくりしました。可愛くて、これから成長が楽しみです。

翔平も31歳。野球選手としては全盛期だと思いますし、いずれ投打どちらかに絞る時が来るでしょう。投げられなくなったら外野手でもいい。練習すればきっとやれると思います。将来的にはメジャーリーグの監督を目指すのも悪くないなんて思っています。現役引退後もイチローさんのようにずっと野球に携わっていてほしいです。野球から離れず、次の世代に何かを伝えていってもらえたらうれしいです。

ただ、父親としての願いは一つです。ケガなく、健康で、最後まで自分の納得いく野球をやってくれれば、それで十分です。これからも応援しています。頑張れ、翔平！

Full English Translation of Toru Ohtani’s Open Letter

(via Sponichi, Nov. 3, 2025)

Shohei, congratulations on winning the World Series for the second straight year!
I thought it would be fine if you returned to pitching full-time next season, but I never expected you to throw this much toward the end of the season. More than anything, I’m happiest that you were able to stay healthy all year.

In Game 4 of the League Championship Series against the Brewers on October 17, you hit three home runs as a hitter and struck out ten batters as a pitcher, earning Series MVP honors. As Shohei himself said after the game — it was almost too good to be true. Once you do something like that, people start saying, “Do it again next time,” and as a parent, that’s a little scary, and I can’t help but feel a bit sorry for you.

To be honest, my wife and I don’t watch Shohei’s games live when he’s pitching. After we get home in the evening, we watch the recordings together and talk about them — “this and that,” as we always do. We can watch when he’s hitting, but when he’s on the mound, it’s been that way since he was a kid — we just can’t stay calm.

When Shohei hits a home run, my wife says, “That’s wonderful!” or “Well done!” But I can’t help making comments like, “That was a high pitch out of the zone — don’t miss next time.” Even when the results are good, I tend to worry first.

I couldn’t make it to any postseason games this year because of my schedule, but in August, when I took the kids from the team I manage to Los Angeles, I had the chance to see Shohei and Mamiko. At the stadium, I got to hold my grandchild for the first time. I was so happy. I remember saying, “Wow, so big already!” He was adorable — I’m really looking forward to watching him grow.

Shohei is now 31 years old — truly in his prime as a baseball player. I believe the time will eventually come when he’ll focus on either pitching or hitting. If he can’t pitch anymore, I think he could do well as an outfielder. With practice, I’m sure he could handle it.

I even think it wouldn’t be a bad idea for him to aim to become a Major League manager someday. Like Ichiro, I hope he stays involved in baseball even after retirement — passing on his knowledge and love for the game to the next generation.

As a father, my only wish is simple: that he stays healthy, avoids injury, and plays baseball the way he wants to until the very end. That alone would make me happy.

I’ll always be cheering for you, Shohei. Keep going strong!

Photo: A child wearing a Los Angeles Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani jersey and cap rides on their father’s shoulders on the first day of spring training baseball workouts at Camelback Ranch in Phoenix, Friday, Feb. 9, 2024(AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)