Baseball fans haven’t been talking about anything else for weeks. What will be the new club of Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani, undoubtedly the best baseball player of the moment?
When Ohtani, 29, announced he was ready to leave the Los Angeles Angels, a fierce battle began for his signature. Every major league club wanted him, but only the richest could make an offer for him.
The Chicago Cubs, Atlanta Braves, Toronto Blue Jays and his own Los Angeles Angels were eliminated one after another. On Saturday, Ohtani personally announced his new club, the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The highest-paid baseball player of all time
Ohtani, who is among the best in the world as both a pitcher and hitter, will earn $700 million in 10 years. This makes him the highest-paid baseball player of all time. Until now, that record was held by teammate Mike Trout, who signed a 12-year contract worth $426.5 million in 2019.
Ohtani was already the big man in Japan’s World Baseball Cup final victory in March. He hit the most home runs in the American League (44 home runs) and also led in individual hitting as a pitcher.
He injured his elbow in August and therefore missed the last month of the season. Still, Ohtani was named the most valuable player for the second time after 2021.
Only the team remains: Ohtani made his major league debut in 2018, but 2014 is still the last year the Angels are allowed to participate in the playoffs. Ohtani hopes to be able to compete with the Dodgers for awards.
As a hitter, because he doesn’t have the option of pitching next year due to his elbow injury.
NOS reporter Anoma van der Veere visited Tokyo’s most famous baseball cafe during the World Baseball Classic and tracked down the Ohtani craze.
Source: NOS
I’m George Gonzalez, a professional journalist and author at The Nation View. With more than 5 years of experience in the field, I specialize in covering sports news for various print media outlets. My passion for writing has enabled me to craft stories that capture the attention of readers all over the world.
