Oakland Athletics Become the Brunt of Joke After Shohei Ohtani Agrees to Join Los Angeles Dodgers

After Shohei Ohtani agreed to sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Saturday, somehow the Oakland Athletics got roped into being the brunt of a joke.

On Saturday, reigning American League MVP Shohei Ohtani announced that he was signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers. It's going to be a record-breaking deal, set at 10 years and $700 million. It will be the richest deal in American professional sports once it's completed.

People all over social media were talking about Ohtani's deal and the Dodgers' chances at winning the World Series, but somehow, the Oakland Athletics entered the conversation and caught a stray.

Per noted sports business reporter Darren Rovell:

$700 Million: What the Dodgers just agreed to pay Shohei Ohtani. 

$667 Million: Total Oakland A's Payroll, Last 10 Seasons

$700 Million: What the Dodgers just agreed to pay Shohei Ohtani.

$667 Million: Total Oakland A's Payroll, Last 10 Seasons

— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) December 9, 2023

Haven't the A's and their fans been through enough, Darren? Not only did the A's have the worst record in baseball this past season, they also learned that they'd be moving to Las Vegas within the next five years.

While the Ohtani deal is historic, it's also sad to contextualize just how little the Athletics have invested in their organization over that decade, despite having some very good teams. The team has let stars Matt Olson, Matt Chapman and Sean Murphy go in just the last two offseasons alone and also dealt away Chris Bassitt and Sean Manaea before the 2021 season.

Before that, the A's let Starling Marte go as well because they didn't want to pay him big money.

And it doesn't appear to be getting better anytime soon. The A's seem content to blead the roster dry and run miniscule payrolls until they get to Las Vegas.

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