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According to multiple sources who spoke with Dodgers Nation on Friday, the two-way superstar has ended the suspense of the most lucrative free-agent pursuit in baseball history. A formal announcement is expected as early as tonight.
The exact value of Ohtani’s contract isn’t known, but it is expected to shatter the value of Mike Trout’s record 12-year, $426.5 million deal with the Angels.
Blue Jays executives have been encouraged throughout the negotiating process with the two-way superstar, privately counting their chances as good as any team’s up until three finalists remained: themselves, the Dodgers, and the Angels.
The news comes as a major disappointment for the Dodgers, who made Ohtani the focal point of their off-season plans. They met with Ohtani in person last Friday in Los Angeles, before Ohtani held his final meeting with the Blue Jays.
It is not believed that manager Dave Roberts’ public confirmation of the meeting had any role in persuading Ohtani to choose Toronto.
The Jays are owned by Rogers Communications, a multimedia conglomerate valued at $24 billion. They are a leading provider of cable and internet north of the border, owning television stations and radio stations across the country – as well as the Blue Jays and NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs. A half-billion dollar (or more) investment in the game’s greatest talent is relatively small for Rogers CEO Tony Staffieri, who has been intimately involved in the process, according to a source.
Key to Rogers’ pitch was something no other team could offer: the ability to command the attention of an entire country. The Blue Jays have been Canada’s only major league team since the Montreal Expos relocated to Washington, D.C. before the 2005 season.
Still, most within the industry saw the Dodgers as the front-runner to sign Ohtani, who played his first six seasons in Anaheim and seriously considered re-signing with the Angels. The Dodgers and Angels have issued lucrative contracts to star free agents before. The largest contract the Blue Jays previously issued was their six-year, $150 million deal with outfielder George Springer in 2021.
According to one source, Rogers is viewing the Ohtani signing as a corporate investment whose value transcends his impact on the field, with Staffieri willing to pay for the added international exposure Ohtani brings to his assets. Ohtani tripled the value of his off-the-field endorsement contracts from 2021 to 2022, according to Forbes, making him baseball’s most marketable player.
For the Dodgers, Ohtani’s choice means they must pivot to Plan B. They were already expected to focus on starting pitching, counting Japanese star Yoshinobu Yamamoto among their top free agent targets. The Dodgers have reportedly been targeting starting pitchers, including Dylan Cease, in trade talks as well.
Now, they must figure out how to fill the DH void left by free agent J.D. Martinez without Ohtani – perhaps by reuniting with Martinez for the 2024 season.
https://dodgersnation.com/shohei-ohtani-to-sign-with-toronto-blue-jays-over-los-angeles-dodgers-sources/2023/12/08/
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