Shohei Ohtani’s upcoming free agency is a major talking point already, with most rumors indicating the two-way star will depart the Los Angeles Angels. However, that is not guaranteed.
In an appearance on “The Ryen Russillo Podcast,” ESPN’s Jeff Passan suggested that Ohtani’s comfort with the Angels could be an underrated factor that could lead him to re-sign.
All the talk around Shohei Ohtani’s future has been about where he may go next. But what if he stays put?@JeffPassan joined @ryenarussillo and explained one key factor that could keep Ohtani in Anaheim: pic.twitter.com/AbNcXmVHwb
— The Ringer (@ringer) June 29, 2023
“We talk about the money. We talk about the winning. I think those are two very important things,” Passan said. “What we don’t appreciate as much as we should, I think, is the comfort. Shohei Ohtani has a lot of comfort with the Los Angeles Angels because that’s been the platform for him to go out and do what he does. They have found what works. It took a few years, it took a Tommy John surgery, but they’ve figured out how to get on this schedule and how this entire ecosystem around him almost moves to the side to placate what he needs to let him be at his very best.
“Ohtani knows exactly what he’s going to get in Anaheim. If you’ve spent the last three years looking like the best player in the history of the game, do you really want to take the risk in chasing these other things, whether it’s money, whether it’s winning, whatever it is, that you’re going to lose that comfort you had and that routine that you’ve established in Anaheim?”
There were plenty of skeptics regarding whether Ohtani would actually work as a two-way player when he moved to the United States. The Angels have made it work, and deserve plenty of credit for that. However, they have not built a winning team around him.
The Angels are adamant that they are not trading Ohtani because they do not want to blow their chances of keeping him. Giving him the chance to succeed elsewhere probably would work against them.
