Why I Can't Get Too Upset at the Shohei Ohtani Contract

Yes, Shohei Ohtani is going to make an absurd amount of money. Here's why I can't get overly bothered by it.

For the last 24 hours, I've seen it all over social media. People are mad that Shohei Ohtani is going to make $700 million over 10 years. 

Some people think Ohtani is massively overpaid and are rooting for him personally to fail. Others are now rooting for the Dodgers to fail. Some have said they'll stop watching baseball entirely because of this deal. Others have said simply that all of professional sports is out of control.

I'm going to make this abundantly clear. I too believe that getting $700 million to play baseball is too much money. I recognize that teachers and public safety personnel are underpaid and I recognize that there are staffing issues all across the country. I recognize that it's disjointing to see an athlete make so much money when so many others can barely make any. I really do.

But my understanding is going to largely end there. I can recognize all this without getting angry. I'm not going to pound the pavement and say that the whole system is broken.

I'm not mad at Shohei Ohtani, in fact, I'm largely happy for him. 

Let me explain:

1) First off. Shohei Ohtani is essentially two players. There's Shohei Ohtani the hitter and Shohei Ohtani the pitcher. Both of which are among the best at their positions in the league. Let's say that Shohei the hitter would get $450 million on the open market. Wouldn't Shohei the pitcher, even with his injury concerns, get close to $250? That adds up to $700 million. Maybe it's $475 and $225, but either way. Would you balk that much if the Dodgers paid two players those sums of money? You might, but not as much as you are right now.

2) At the end of the day, I'm pro-employee. I've been an employee my entire life. I've never been a business owner. I've made previous employers money before and never seen a dime of the return. I've seen companies I've worked for make profit and filter none of it down to the employees. In this case, the Dodgers are going to make zillions of dollars because they have Ohtani on the roster. Television contracts, ticket sales, merchandising, it will all be lucrative. If Ohtani is going to make that much revenue for the organization, I'm happy he's seeing a return on it.

3) Also, YES, I wish that Ohtani hadn't gone to the Dodgers. I'm disappointed that the 2024 season appears to be the Dodgers Invitational even before it starts. I wish the talent would be more dispersed, but I also wish that the owners around baseball wouldn't be so cheap. This is a "don't hate the player, hate the game" moment. While not every owner can afford $700 million, they ALL, can afford to invest in their teams and choose not to. Just this offseason alone, we've heard about the Mariners and Twins, two teams that should be chasing a World Series, tightening or slashing their budgets.

4) Yes, athletes make a lot of money. Ohtani is going to make a lot of money, but do you know much money Taylor Swift has made in 2023?

Per Billboard:

In all, Billboard estimates that Swift has generated $906.1 million and sold 4.1 million tickets in 2023 across all shows in the United States, Mexico and South America. That would unofficially make The Eras Tour the biggest tour of 2023. And when considering Swift’s total revenue from the tour, it doesn’t even account for merchandise sales, sponsorships, music streaming and sales boosts, or her self-produced and released Taylor Swift: The Eras Tour concert film.

Swift has generated more than Ohtani's contract in just one year. She's making a fortune. Does anyone have a problem with an entertainer making a ton of money?

5) I saw someone say that there should be a salary cap in baseball as a way to curb spending. I'll be honest, I can understand the sentiment behind that. In theory, it would help keep the have-nots within range of the "haves." But here's the thing. The cap will just go up each year and the salaries will balloon with it. The NFL has a cap - and we still end up with $40 million quarterback salaries that guys don't deserve. So a cap wouldn't solve you thinking that athletes are overpaid.

The only concern I saw that I agree with is that I feel bad that Dodger fans will likely foot the bill to help pay Ohtani. Billionaire owners can afford to not price out the common fan in order to help pay for this.

That said, I just can't get too riled up about it. I wish that my own team and my own team owner would start spending money too.

Follow Fastball on FanNation on social media

Continue to follow our Fastball on FanNation coverage on social media by LIKING us on Facebook and by following us on Twitter @FastballFN.