Despite the approaching MLB trading deadline of August 2, the Los Angeles Angels appear to have no desire to trade Shohei Ohtani. Even so, there are plenty of other teams out there looking to make a deal with the Angels and own Ohtani.
Turns out it wasn’t just Juan Soto who was a Washington Nationals outfielder capable of attracting interest in the MLB trade. Ohtani also became one of the MLB stars who was able to attract many teams before the MLB trading deadline ended.
Sources: @MLB teams are calling #Angels to express trade interest in Shohei Ohtani, but the Angels are indicating they have no plans to move the superstar before the Aug. 2 Trade Deadline. @MLBNetwork @MLBNetworkRadio
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) July 23, 2022
Angels’ condition drives the other team’s desire to acquire Ohtani
Based on Jon Morosi’s report, an MLB.com reporter, several teams have contacted the Angels in recent weeks. “They expressed interest in acquiring Ohtani,” he said. However, any discussion about trading Ohtani is constantly met with strong indications that the Angels will not trade their star player.
One of the reasons why many teams inquire about Ohtani’s availability has to do with Angels’ current condition, reports say. It is known that the Angels entered the season hoping to compete for a place in the MLB playoffs.
Although the Angels’ had a promising play at the start of the season, their performance began to fade in the MLB standings. The team has held a 12-31 record since June 1 and is considered the worst record in baseball.
Moreover, the Angels have paid a hefty salary ($426,5 million) for Mike Trout on a 12-year contract and Anthony Rendon on a seven-year contract worth $245 million. Even so, with that sizable expense, the Angels have only won 12 of their last 49 games and 22.5 of the first place in the AL West.
With these conditions, many other teams have started to question the availability of Ohtani, who is only under contract until the 2023 season with the Angels. Ohtani is also eligible for arbitration in 2023 and he reportedly wants a long-term deal to receive $50 million per year.
Ohtani’s performance and record
Another reason why Ohtani is being targeted by other teams is his outstanding performance and achievements during his career. On the other hand, this is also one of the reasons why the Angels are reluctant to trade Ohtani, one of the talented baseball players.
Ohtani is one of the most valuable players on the Angels roster. Moreover, he is the first full-time two-way baseball player in a century to earn All-Star awards as both a pitcher and a hitter in the last two seasons.
This year, he set a 9-5 record on the mound with a 2.8-ERA and 0.996 WHIP. On the plate, Ohtani has also hit 19 home runs with 56 RBI. In addition, from the last 17 games of the Angels that saw Ohtani as the starting pitcher, they got three wins.
Ohtani was also a Cy Young candidate this year and dropped out of the AL MVP campaign in 2021, thus becoming the most unique baseball player in history.
The Angels asserted that with all of Ohtani’s qualities and abilities, they may become superior competitors in the future. This reinforces why many other teams want Ohtani, but the Angels are hesitant to trade Ohtani for the future of the team.