Shohei's secret revealed? How sleep has aided Ohtani's excellence

Sometimes, you just need your sleep. But if you're the best player in baseball, you need a lot of sleep.

During Tuesday night's MLB All-Star Game in Seattle, Shohei Ohtani admitted the biggest key to his success was a special sleep regimen -- one which has been known to take up half of a 24-hour day.

The details of Ohtani's routine

During his time in Nippon Professional Baseball, Ohtani struck up a sponsorship deal with national bedding giant Nishikawa -- a relationship that has been maintained and nurtured since the two-way star joined the Los Angeles Angels in 2018.

Ohtani considers sleep as his "recovery" -- and the term is an apt one, given the workload he shoulders for the Angels on a regular basis. Ohtani considers sleep as an essential part of his training, especially during the grueling 162-gameMLB season.

And thanks to his partnership with Nishikawa, Ohtani has access to a wide range of innovative products that further encourage deep sleep. One such product is a portable mattress he first used during the World Baseball Classic.

The emergence of sleep science

Ohtani is a prime example of how beneficial regular, lengthy sleep can be relative to peak athletic performance.

Several NFL teams began seriously embracing sleep science in the mid-2010s. The emerging field was also credited with helping Premier League side Leicester City overcome 5000-to-1 odds to win the title in 2016 -- and now it's been revealed that consistent, prolonged sleep is critical for Ohtani's amazing achievements as a hitter and a pitcher.

As usual, Ohtani will be one of the top players to watch now that the All-Star Game is finished. The 29-year-old could be playing out his final months with the Angels, with Los Angeles set to miss the postseason again as the two-way phenomenon's contract expires this fall.

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