Shohei Ohtani's shadow loomed over trade deadline for Angels, Dodgers
Shohei Ohtani was not moved at the trade deadline, but make no mistake about it, his shadow loomed over the sport, especially here in Southern California.
The best player in the world will be available to sign with whomever he wishes once the season ends, and two of his most serious suitors will be the Dodgers and his current team, the Angels.
Both organizations showed their game plan for Ohtani by the moves they made – or didn’t make – during and leading up to the deadline Tuesday.
The Dodgers are clearly not interested in taking on huge contracts, like the one Justin Verlander has. He’s due $43 million next year at age 41. The highest-paid player in the game was shipped back to Houston instead of heading up the Dodger rotation.
No, the Dodgers are saving their money for Mr. Ohtani, who is expected to be earning up to $50 million a year beginning in 2024.
The reluctance to add an ace to their staff did not set well with Dodger fans. They instead settled on 36-year-old, 270-pound Lance Lynn, who leads the majors in home runs allowed. In his debut Tuesday night, he allowed three more home runs to the lowly Oakland A’s but did get through seven innings for the win. He will only cost the Dodgers $1 million to buy out his contract next season.
There’s no question the Dodgers needed pitching help. They had an atrocious 6.18 ERA in July and their staff is ranked No. 25 overall.
Unless Julio Urias returns to form and Clayton Kershaw gets (and stays) healthy this team will be highly vulnerable in the playoffs.
But they’re rolling the dice, keeping as much money as possible for the bidding war that is sure to follow Ohtani.
So are the Angels.
They need to show Ohtani they can be contenders. He has expressed his desire many times about playing for a winner.
To that end, General Manager Perry Minasian was impressively dealing and re-stocking the team since June, adding seven veterans who can all help in their playoff push. The team has won 11 of 17 since the All-Star break.
The seven players are all free agents at the end of the season so it’s win now for the Angels.
If they fall short – and the odds are against them – will the front office efforts be enough to convince Ohtani to stay in Anaheim long-term?
And as a note, all seven of the players acquired by the Angels in the past few weeks are free agents at the end of this season: Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez, Mike Moustakas, Eduardo Escobar, C.J. Cron, Randal Grichuk and Dominic Leone.
It looks like Ohtani or bust.
Pete Donovan is a Palm Desert resident and former Los Angeles Times sports reporter. He can be reached at pwdonovan22@yahoo.com
This article originally appeared on Palm Springs Desert Sun: Shohei Ohtani's shadow loomed over trade deadline for Angels, Dodgers
