With All-Star week officially in the rearview mirror, the focus of Major League Baseball and the Los Angeles Angels turns to the trade deadline and what teams could shift gears, making big-ticket players available.
The Angels find themselves in a peculiar spot, playing middling baseball up until the midway point, sitting at fourth place in the American League West, nine games out of first place. They’ve lost seven of their last 10 games, and general manager Perry Minasian has a difficult few weeks to size up.
Shohei Ohtani is the key piece to their success, but alone he isn’t the only thing to make the Angels a successful club. They’re also missing a majority of their starting lineup as an injury wave has taken over.
The buzz around Seattle during the All-Star Game festivities was about what the Angels are going to do. That decision remains to be seen and it’s clear Ohtani is in line for a large payday, but he’s still focused on the current season, per The Associated Press:
“I’ve never been a free agent before, so I’m not sure how that’s going to be,” Ohtani said. “I’m focused on this season right now. I just want to do my best this year, try and get as many wins as possible and just do my best.”
Ohtani is the presumed front-runner for another AL MVP award, as he leads the league in numerous offensive categories. In June, he posted a .394 batting average with 41 hits, 15 of which were home runs. He recorded 29 RBI and 27 runs scored, and the Angels went 14-13 in the calendar month:
Ohtani, 29, did say that his desire to play for a winning team remains a top priority.
“Those feelings get stronger year by year,” Ohtani said through his interpreter, Ippei Mizuhara. “It sucks to lose. He wants to win, so it gets stronger every year.”
The biggest game Ohtani has played in has been the Championship in the 2023 World Baseball Classic, when he struck out Mike Trout to secure a title for Team Japan. He’s carried that fire into this season, and many stars in Seattle this past week were trying to pry info out of him:
For his part, Ohtani wouldn’t tip his hand as to which players at the All-Star Game have been recruiting him.
“I think I’ll keep that a secret,” he said.
The coverage surrounding him turns to what is to be instead of what could still be with the current Angels season. But given where they are in the standings, the media buzz overtook any optimism that they might right the ship with an all-in approach at the deadline.
If there is anything more to come for Ohtani, it is the guaranteed payday he’s set to receive from whom he picks as his next home.
Shohei Ohtani was more relaxed in this year’s All-Star Game
Ohtani was voted in as the American League’s starting designated hitter following a landslide of fan votes, making him the first AL member as a guaranteed lock.
Making his third consecutive Midsummer Classic, Ohtani has a refined view on the showcase event.
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