After Shohei Ohtani officially signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday, the Los Angeles Angels released a statement.
Superstar of a generation Shohei Ohtani signed a contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers after leaving the Angels. The $700 million contract has ten years left on it, but there are some very intriguing nuances that you can read about here.
The Angels posted the following statement on social media after the deal was made public:
“Watching Shohei Ohtani, a player for future generations, create history during his six seasons wearing an Angels uniform was an honour.
We consider ourselves incredibly fortunate to have witnessed him redefine the limits of our sport.
We are appreciative of Shohei’s numerous contributions to both the baseball community and our team. We hope the best for him as he embarks on his next professional chapter.”
All of that is true, and the Angels were right to wish him well, but this whole thing has got to hurt.
To begin with, the Angels failed to take advantage of having Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani in the same lineup for six years. It’s an unbelievable source of embarrassment that, despite having the two best players in the league, they didn’t even make the playoffs.
Secondly, in order to get the most out of Ohtani, the Angels could have traded him this year at the trade deadline. Rather, they watched him go for nothing more than a draft pick as compensation.
Thirdly, Ohtani left for a Dodgers team that plays in the same market as the Angels in addition to departing altogether. Ownership can’t take kindly to that.
With 44 home runs, Ohtani led the American League in home runs and recently won his second MVP award in three years.
Use FanNation to follow Fastball on social media.
Follow us on Twitter at @FastballFN and LIKE us on Facebook to stay up to date on our Fastball on FanNation coverage.
Leave a Reply