Shohei Ohtani is available for bidding for all 30 MLB teams and is said to be open to joining any team. But we might be able to cross the Philadelphia Phillies off his list.
Ohtani was interviewed by MLB.com’s Jon Morosi back in February, though the Q&A wasn’t published until this week. In the interview, Ohtani was asked about the United States and offered the following, which indicated a lack of interest in the Phillies:
MLB.com: What do you like about daily life in the United States?
Ohtani: I’ve only been to Hawaii and Arizona, but I like the huge steaks.MLB.com: What cities are you curious about and would like to see?
Ohtani: The Rocky Balboa statue, I want a picture of that.MLB.com: Philadelphia has a baseball team, you know.
Ohtani: No, I just want to visit there.
Yeah, that doesn’t sound like Ohtani is too interested in the Phils. Maybe things have changed since February, but perhaps they’re not high on his list.
Ohtani did note that the Giants, Dodgers and Rangers all had interest in him coming out of high school, so that might have made an impression on him. Still, there’s another team that is supposedly the favorite to land him.
