Stephen A. Smith Explains Why It’s the Right Time for Angels to Trade Shohei Ohtani

Angels fans would hate to see this happen.

With the Angels slumping lately and star outfielder Mike Trout headed to the injured list yet again, Stephen A. Smith believes it’s time for Los Angeles to trade two-way megastar Shohei Ohtani.

Smith, speaking on First Take Wednesday, a day after Trout hit the IL and Ohtani left the game with a blister, said that if Babe Ruth could be traded, the player who regularly receives comparisons to Ruth can, too.

“What have [the Angels] won? They haven’t even had a winning record with Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout together,” Smith said. “You can’t let him walk for nothing.”

Here’s Smith’s full take on the mess in Anaheim:

It's time for the Angels to trade Shohei Ohtani according to @stephenasmith 😳

"This is the modern-day Babe Ruth. ... and Babe Ruth was traded." pic.twitter.com/ZhaOWsgAsR

— First Take (@FirstTake) July 5, 2023

Ohtani is having another sparkling season in Los Angeles, leading Major League Baseball with 31 home runs at the plate while hitting .300 and simultaneously ranking in the top three in the sport in strikeouts on the mound with 132 in 100.1 innings. He’s coming off what SI’s Emma Baccellieri deemed arguably the best month in baseball history, hitting nearly .400 in June and capping it off with a 493-foot home run.

He’s also a free agent at the end of the year and is expected to command a record-setting contract. It will be hard to retain Ohtani in free agency for the Angels, given their inability to put a winning team around him. That’s why Smith believes moving him ahead of the Aug. 1 trade deadline, especially with the Angels sputtering and now missing Trout. Smith also said he believes Ohtani would command a major haul in any deal, despite his contract being up in a few months.

“Of course someone is going to want him,” Smith said. “Do you have any idea how many seats he is going to fill up for a team that has the potential to win?”

A potential Ohtani trade would be among the biggest in MLB history, with the potential to shake up the playoff race should he be shipped to a contender. But will Los Angeles wave the white flag on a postseason push this year?