As free agent Shohei Ohtani, 29, continues to meet with Major League Baseball teams, attention is turning to the outcome of his negotiations.
According to local media, the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants, Toronto Blue Jays, and Los Angeles Angels are the four teams that have held initial talks with Ohtani.
The Dodgers are believed to be the first, with a meeting taking place last week. Dodgers general manager Dave Roberts confirmed this.
Roberts, who is attending the Major League Baseball Winter Meetings in Nashville, Tennessee, said in an interview with local media on June 6 (ET), “To be clear, Shohei is our top priority. We met with him a couple days ago at Dodger Stadium and talked for about two to three hours.” “We talked well, and I felt like we got to know each other. It was great to spend time with him.”
In particular, Roberts said, “I spoke with our medical staff, and we are confident that Shohei will return from his elbow surgery and resume pitching. He will sign with us.”
The Dodgers have been the favorite to sign Ohtani for more than a year. They are the frontrunners among his latest shortlist.
In addition to the Dodgers, Ohtani also met with San Francisco officials on April 4. “Ohtani met with Giants brass yesterday at Oracle Park and toured the ballpark,” the San Francisco Chronicle reported. He was spotted with (retired) Buster Posey and new manager Bob Melvin.” ‘The Giants signed Barry Bonds to a six-year, $43.75 million deal 31 years ago, making him their most expensive player, and Ohtani is more than 10 times that,’ the Chronicle reported.
Bonds, who became a free agent in December 1992, signed a six-year deal to switch from the Pittsburgh Pirates to San Francisco. At the time, the $43.75 million was the largest contract in major league history. Bonds was previously named National League MVP twice, in 1990 and 1992. Ohtani joins Bonds as the second player in history to win two MVP awards in six full-time seasons and hit free agency.
The news of Toronto’s entry into the Ohtani bidding war comes as a bit of a surprise. The Athletic reported on May 5 that “Blue Jays officials confirmed they met with Ohtani at their spring training complex in Dunedin, Fla. That means Toronto is among the finalists to sign Ohtani.
The Cubs are also reportedly preparing to meet with Ohtani, and the Angels have reportedly already made an offer. “A reunion between Ohtani and the Angels is still a possible scenario and the club is very active,” MLB.com reporter Mark Paynesand told MLB Network on Friday, adding, “I’ve heard from several sources in the last 24 hours that Ohtani will eventually return to the Angels.” 아톰카지노 주소
Based on local media reports, the order of Ohtani’s recent meetings has been the Angels, Dodgers, San Francisco, and Toronto. While the order of the meetings is not necessarily indicative of the likelihood of a deal, there is no doubt that the Dodgers are still the favorite.
USA Today’s Bob Nightingale has a 70% chance of Ohtani signing with the Dodgers, while MLB Network’s John Heyman has a 50% chance. On the other hand, both Painesand and Nightingale put the odds of him staying with the Angels at 20%.
“I don’t know if Ohtani still has a preference for the West, but it’s clear that winning history is the most important factor,” said Painesand, “He’s never played in the playoffs with the Angels, but there’s still a chance he could re-sign.
The signing of Ohtani is not expected to happen until after the Winter Meetings, possibly even before Christmas. “Ohtani plans to continue meeting with teams after the Winter Meetings, according to a senior source close to a team that is very interested in signing him,” Heyman reported.
