Shohei Ohtani's high school baseball coach instilled the star's humility

The Los Angeles Dodgers superstar had a 99 mph fastball as an 18-year old and was an Olympic-caliber swimmer

Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani (17) celebrates after he singled in the go ahead run in the seventh inning of game against the San Diego Padres at Dodger Stadium. / Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Long before he burst on to the Major League Baseball scene in 2018, leaving Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) league to sign with the Los Angeles Angels, Shohei Ohtani learned the game's intangibles on the high school level.

A two-way sensation, as both a Cy Young-caliber pitcher and one of the greatest offensive performers game has ever seen, Ohtani is building a resume that may ultimately recognize him as the greatest player in the history of the game. Despite being unable to pitch or play in the field this season, after undergoing Tommy John surgery last year while still with the Angels, Ohtani is having perhaps the most prolific offensive season in the sport's history while serving as the Los Angeles Dodgers' designated hitter.

Ohtani is the first player to ever have 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases in a MLB season, as he has slugged 54 long balls and swiped 57 bases. He also has a National League best 130 RBI. His .310 batting average is also just four points shy of the .314 mark currently held by San Diego Padres infielder Luis Arraez. Should he find away to get past Arraez on Sunday, Ohtani would become the fist player to win the National League Triple Crown since 1937.

Like nearly every player in the history of baseball, Ohtani's road to baseball greatness began on a high school baseball diamond.

Born into an athletic family in Iwate, Japan, Ohtani's mother was a national-level badminton player and his father was a baseball player in the Japanese Industrial League. The youngest of three children, Ohtani was introduced to baseball by his father who coached him when he was young. He earned the moniker of "yakyū shōnen," which translates to "baseball boy" or "a kid who lives, east and breathes baseball."

As he prepared for high school, his prowess as a ballplayer was widely known in Japan, a baseball crazed nation, and he had opportunities to play for several powerhouse high school programs in Osaka and Yokohama. He preferred, however, to stay in Iwate and play for his local school, Hanamaki Higashi High School.

He quickly achieved legendary status, setting the national record in 2012 by throwing a 98-mile per hour fastball as an 18-year old. He also struck 16 batters in a 1-0 loss in the 18-Under World Championships, later that year. His high school coach, Hiroshi Sasaki, did not let Ohtani success go to his head, assigning him to clean toilets in the school's dorms to teach humility. The lessons must have taken, as Ohtani is regarded as one of the most humble stars in the game.

Ohtani also swam at Hanamaki Higashi and Sasaki said he was fast enough in the pool to swim in the Olympics, but baseball was his destiny.

Ohtani explored opportunities to jump right from high school to MLB, but was unable to reach a deal with one of several teams which pursued his services, including the Dodgers. Instead, he signed with the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters of the NPB, which agreed to let him play both ways, as a pitcher and hitter.

He would go on to become a 5-time NPB All-Star and he was named the Pacific League MVP in 2016 when he led the Ham Fighters to the Japan Series championship. Since arriving in the U.S., Ohtani has gone to the MLB All-Star Game four times, won the 2018 American League Rookie of the Year Award, and won two American League MVP awards. He is the odds on favorite for a third MVP honor this year, which will be his first in the National Leauge.