Shohei Ohtani remains extraordinary even after surgery! The legendary Japanese pitcher who underwent 10 operations calls it “unbelievable.”

Former Yakult Swallows ace Masahiro Katayama underwent 10 surgeries in his career, including three elbow ligament reconstructions. Recently, he expressed amazement when discussing Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani’s return to Major League Baseball as a “two-way” player.

Katayama currently serves as a supervisor for a corporate league team. Over his 15-year professional career, he amassed 85 wins and 68 losses, leading the league with 16 wins in 2009 and achieving double-digit wins in six seasons. Despite undergoing nine surgeries during his career, including three ligament reconstructions, and one more after retirement, he repeatedly made comebacks like a “phoenix.”

Having battled injuries for years, Katayama deeply understands how difficult it is to return to the mound after surgery, which makes him especially admire Ohtani’s comeback. “It’s not just impressive to recover from surgery, but to continue competing as a ‘two-way’ player at the highest level—that’s truly incredible.” He added that returning to play after surgery is not uncommon, but Ohtani’s way of doing it is astonishing. “Even just pitching is remarkable, but what’s truly amazing is that he continues to excel as a hitter before and after surgery. I think that’s extraordinary.”

So far, Ohtani has appeared in 126 games, posting a .283 batting average, 44 home runs, and an OPS of 1.013, while also starting 10 games as a pitcher. Katayama pointed out that this relentless pursuit of limits is unbelievable. “Usually, pitchers don’t want to exert themselves fully the day after throwing five or six innings, but he manages to steal bases and hit home runs even with soreness the next day or two. That’s truly remarkable.”

Drawing from his own experience, Katayama analyzed the heavy strain hitting places on the elbow. “I even considered switching to left-handed batting because the pressure on the elbow after surgery was so intense. But Ohtani not only endures it, he also hits so many home runs at the Major League level, which is truly admirable.”

He concluded by emphasizing that Ohtani evolves every year, inspiring limitless imagination. “Honestly, I can’t fully understand how he does it, but he is accomplishing something unprecedented. I no longer need to speculate about what he will do next, because whatever happens, it will be exciting to watch.”