Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts were already marquee players for the Dodgers, but Shohei Ohtani is an other animal. Ohtani is well-known.

 

 

 

Barry Bonds shattered Hank Aaron’s lifetime home run record in 2007, and since then, Barry Bonds has been the subject of intense scrutiny in baseball. Ohtani, possibly the most popular player in the game, recently joined the most prestigious organization in the sport.

Some players may not find Ohtani’s extra attention to be pleasant. Players are spending less time at the Dodgers clubhouse than in recent camps because reporters are already swarming there first thing in the morning. See the madness at the Dodgers’ spring training facility.

Owner says keeping Shohei Ohtani with the Angels was “the best thing” last season

Owner Arte Moreno decided to keep the two-way phenom in the Los Angeles Angels at the trade deadline, defying the general consensus that Ohtani would leave via free agency after the 2023 season. Ohtani signed a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers this winter, ending his six-year stay with the Angels, confirming the rumors that he will go elsewhere. аccоrding tо the оC Register, Mоrenо tоld repоrters оn Wednesdаy thаt the аngels wоuld nоt mаtch the Dоdgers’ оffseаsоn оffer tо оhtаni. During the times when the аngels cоuld hаve trаded the Jаpаnese stаr, including the trаde deаdlines in 2022 аnd 2023, Mоrenо wоuld nоt sаy tо repоrters if he thоught the teаm hаd а chаnce tо keep him. Moreno told reporters, “From a fan perspective, they pay for tickets and watch the games and listen to the games, this is a special guy.” “I hope he gets to play. Our industry is entertainment. We all decided that it would be preferable to keep him and try again.” After that, the Angels became better through the end of July and were just three games out of a postseason place. But they lost seven straight games at the start of August, and by the end of the month, they were eliminated from the postseason chase. In an attempt to improve their prospects of earning a postseason berth, the Angels added multiple players during their brief period of success, raising their projected payroll above the luxury tax level. However, as the Angels’ postseason run came to an end, they had to place seven players on waivers to get back below the $233 million mark, and they ultimately finished barely than $30,000 below it. Since Ohtani left the team, the Angels haven’t even come close to matching last year’s spending. FanGraphs estimates that the Angels will pay out roughly $188 million in payroll for the purpose of the luxury tax. The goal, Moreno told reporters, was to “set the budget lower.” “I’m not going to spend money unless it’s going to substantially change the team,” he stated. He also mentioned how he was inspired by the young players on the Angels, namely first baseman Nolan Schanuel, shortstop Zach Neto, and catcher Logan O’ Hoppe. Telling reporters, “I am in it because I believe we can build a team to win,” Moreno said. Even though he looked at selling the team during the previous offseason, Moreno, who has owned the Angels since 2003, told reporters he has no plans to sell the team. Early in Moreno’s career, the Angels enjoyed some success as a contender; however, they haven’t finished with a winning season since 2015, and they haven’t made the playoffs since 2014.