Dodgers Rumors: Poll Shows Current MLB Stars Feel Shohei Ohtani Signs with LA
Shohei Ohtani is off to an MVP pace for the Angels.
The two-way superstar went 0-for-4 Tuesday night in their loss to the Dodgers, snapping his 15-game hitting streak and 22-game on-base run, but that's just a small blip in the road for him.
Entering Wednesday, Ohtani was still hitting .295 with an AL-leading 24 home runs and 58 RBI, and he's coming up big on the mound as well with a 3.29 ERA through 14 starts.
Also, there's the one rather giant elephant in the room when it comes to the baseball icon.
The 28-year-old's contract is due to expire at the end of this season, putting him in line for what will highly likely be the biggest contract in both MLB and US pro sports history.
When it comes to a player who can perform at an All-Star level both at the plate and on the mound, Ohtani getting potentially $500 million isn't too far out of the realm of possibility.
That leaves his future in question, and there will be plenty of suitors vying for his services.
As for what some of his fellow MLB players think will happen? They took a survey on that for The Athletic.
The Athletic polled around 100 MLB players and 57.2 percent said Ohtani will be playing for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2024. This was distantly followed by his current team, the Angels, with 11.4 percent of votes, then the Padres and Mets (7.2 percent), and the Yankees (6.3 percent).
...“Who has the most money?” one pitcher asked. An AL player we spoke to had it all gamed out: “The Mets and Padres will get in a bidding war and the Dodgers will swoop in.”
The players surveyed believe by a wide margin that Ohtani will be a Dodger, and the team largely stayed put in the free agent market this past offseason in order to make a competitive offer to him.
As for Ohtani himself, things have changed for the Angels largely due to his contributions.
They're in a Wild Card spot as of Wednesday and are very much in contention to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2014?
Could that change the dynamics and give the Angels a fighting chance at keeping Ohtani in red?
Possibly, but he was noncommittal when asked before the season whether he would be open to signing an extension with the team he's called home since 2018.
“This is my last year, and I’m aware of that. As of now, I’m an Angel. And that’s all I want to focus on. I haven’t really thought too far ahead." (via The Athletic)
The baseball world will likely know Ohtani's future at some point this winter, and the Dodgers look like they'll certainly be a contender for a player that the sport had truly never seen until he came along.
