The biggest story of the baseball offseason is what free agent Shohei Ohtani is going to do this winter. The two-way superstar is the biggest catch on the market, and everyone is waiting for him to make his decision.
He has no shortage of suitors for his services, but the Dodgers do remain the frontrunners for right now. Many other free agents will wait until Ohtani decides where to play before signing, to then get desperate teams calling them.
However, nobody really knows what the plan is for Ohtani since he isn’t big on speaking in the media, and reportedly he plans to hold secret free agency meetings. But one MLB insider did provide a timeline on when he may sign this offseason.
Insider Jeff Passan of ESPN has reported that Ohtani may end up signing rather quickly, instead of drawing everything out. And we could see it happen before the winter meetings take place in early December.
“The expectation among teams involved is that Ohtani could move relatively quickly — perhaps even before the Dec. 4-7 winter meetings, according to sources.” (Jeff Passan)
Per Jeff Passan of ESPN
Passan is one of the best insiders in the game, and he typically gets accurate information. This would mean that Ohtani would sign in the next few weeks, and it would be similar to when he first joined the big leagues. He took only a few days after being posted to decide to join the Angels, and we may see that again.
Ohtani likely knows that the other free agents will be waiting for him, and he probably doesn’t want to hold things up. It has also been reported that he may have known where he wanted to go all along.
The winter of Ohtani may not last long, but every day there is a new rumor. Teams are looking for different ways to land him for the foreseeable future, and whoever he signs with will be getting a true superstar.
Hopefully, when the dust settles, Ohtani will be calling Dodger Stadium his new home, and the Dodgers will have landed the biggest free agent in baseball history. It remains to be seen what will happen, but LA has to like their chances.
Photo Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
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