Photo/Illutration Shohei Ohtani talks with his teammates on the bench on Sept. 17. (Ryo Kato)

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519), a versatile genius of the Renaissance best known for his iconic painting “Mona Lisa,” displayed his great talent not only in art but also in science and technology.

Early signs of the amazing caliber of his talent can be found in a letter the polymath, at the age of 30, wrote to Ludovico Sforza (1452-1508), a duke who effectively governed the Duchy of Milan, in search of a job.

Claiming he was a skilled inventor of instruments of war, da Vinci said he could make “kinds of mortars” that were “most convenient and easy to carry” as well as “covered chariots, safe and unattackable.”

In times of peace, he said, he could create great works of architecture and sculpture.

“I can do in painting whatever may be done, as well as any other, be he who he may,” he added, according to “Notes of Leonardo da Vinci,” a collection of notes he wrote translated by Minpei Sugiura (1913-2001), a Japanese writer, and published by Iwanami Shoten, Publishers.

Driven by his intellectual curiosity, da Vinci also explored such fields as astronomy and anatomy. Marveling at the width and depth of his talent, people of later generations called him a “universalist.”

This is precisely because both art and science have become highly specialized and segmented over time. Perhaps professional baseball has evolved in a similar way.

Shohei Ohtani of the Los Angeles Angels was named Most Valuable Player of Major League Baseball’s American League. The fact that he received all 30 first-place votes from baseball journalists is a sign of admiration for his versatility.

Ohtani has challenged the conventional wisdom that it is impossible to be successful both as a pitcher and a batter in professional baseball. And that pitchers should never try to steal a base. He has proved all the skeptics and doubters wrong.

“I’m happy about the fact that I could do my best to simply see how better I can really become,” he said. His words are genuinely straightforward.

Apparently inspired by Ohtani, some major league players are already exploring the possibility of pursuing a two-way career. There are also probably many children dreaming of following in Ohtani’s footsteps as future pro baseball players.

Ohtani has shown you do not necessarily have to give something up to make a great accomplishment. The message of his achievement is that everybody can be more ambitious and enjoy tackling many challenges.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Nov. 21

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.

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