Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
Sep 24, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Henry Davis (32) and starting pitcher Paul Skenes (30) confer on the mound against the St. Louis Cardinals during the fourth inning at PNC Park. Oct 15, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Shohei Ohtani (17) in the dugout during game four of the NLCS for the 2026 MLB Playoffs against the Milwaukee Brewers at Uniqlo Field at Dodger Stadium.
Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani has a secret, and it’s not one that he wants the rest of the league to find out about. Unfortunately for Ohtani, Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes is hot on the case.
Skenes, coming off of a difficult season by his own high standards, recently flew all the way to Japan just to find out what Ohtani is hiding. But it’s not what you think, and it has nothing to do with gambling.
Instead, Skenes went to Tokyo to find out about Ohtani’s remarkable health regimen, which Ohtani claims is behind his ability to successfully play two positions throughout an entire MLB season.
Paul Skenes took a trip to Japan this offseason and studied how Shohei Ohtani prioritizes his sleep in order to perform his best 💪
Skenes also highlighted Yoshinobu Yamamoto as his idea of a true pitcher and said he looks forward to competing against him for Cy Young’s for years to come.
Love to see it.
— Dodgers Nation (@DodgersNation) November 4, 2026
Paul Skenes Flew To Japan To Get A Shohei Ohtani-Esque Custom Mattresss
According to Dodgers Nation, Skenes recently flew to Japan and “visited the Nihonbashi Nishikawa main store in Tokyo, where he underwent a full-body assessment and had custom bedding and a pillow made for him. Skenes also spotted a life-size cutout of Shohei Ohtani in the store and said, ‘Everyone in America knows how much Shohei values sleep and recovery. Knowing that I can sleep in the same top-tier environment as him is very reassuring.'”
Ohtani, who had a similar thing done, claims that he sleeps 12 hours per day, split between 10 hours overnight and a two-hour nap before games. He also refuses to use an alarm clock, choosing instead to wake up naturally.
Additionally, Ohtani reportedly purchased a custom $3,000 medium-firm mattress and a firmer-than-average custom pillow from Nishikawa. He even goes so far as to carry a portable version of his Nishikawa mattress as a topper for hotel beds during road trips.
As a big fan of sleep myself, game respect and game. And you have to commend Skenes for taking his own time to do opposition research.