We are all on Shohei Ohtani watch these days, and it feels like he’s been a free agent for months. In reality, he’s only been free to sign anywhere for about five weeks, but he’s been holding up a large stack of free-agent dominos waiting to fall.
The Dodgers are in on the Ohtani sweepstakes, of course. Manager Dave Roberts even confirmed the team met with him last week.
Roberts’ comments weren’t met too well by Dodgers executives. No other team officials have spoken publicly about Ohtani, whose camp had previously asked to keep all meetings private. Whether or not the mere admission of an in-person meeting constituted a “leak” remains a matter of debate among anxious fans.
Nobody really knows much about the free agency of Ohtani, which is by design. ESPN’s Jeff Passan appeared on the Pat McAfee Show on Thursday and provided the latest update on the Ohtani free agency sweepstakes.
“The favorites from the beginning, AJ, have been the Los Angeles Dodgers,” Passan said. “Ohtani is familiar with Southern California.”
Per Jeff Passan on the Pat McAfee Show on ESPN on Thursday
The Dodgers have long been thought of as the favorites to sign Ohtani, and perhaps that hasn’t changed since the 2023 season ended — despite Ohtani meeting with other clubs and winnowing his group of finalists to five or fewer.
In another development, the Dodgers reportedly asked pitcher Joe Kelly to give up his number-17 jersey if they were to sign Ohtani. Team officials must believe they have a good chance of signing Ohtani; why else would they ask a player to surrender his jersey in favor of someone who isn’t on the team?
The biggest threat to the Dodgers could be the Toronto Blue Jays, based on recent reports. Industry sources indicate the Blue Jays like their chances, perhaps putting them neck and neck with the Dodgers in the Ohtani sweepstakes.
Passan provided an update on their chances as well.
“The interesting thing, though, is what the Toronto Blue Jays have done. The Blue Jays, out of nowhere, have made a really strong run at Ohtani, and I’m not sure if they’re considered the favorites at this point because this whole thing has been under a shroud of secrecy.”
Per Jeff Passan on the Pat McAfee Show on ESPN on Thursday
Toronto has been pushing very hard to land Ohtani, giving the Dodgers a run for their money. Ohtani is said to be intrigued by the thought of playing for Canada’s only baseball team, which has reached the postseason in three of the last four seasons.
Although reports have indicated the Angels and Giants might still be in the running, the Blue Jays and Dodgers might be the last teams standing for Ohtani. We are heading into what feels like the endgame right now, and it’s expected that the two-way superstar will be making his decision by the end of the weekend.
Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
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