Arguably, the hottest free agent in quite some time has made his decision. Shohei Ohtani is headed to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Though, Ohtani will only be a one-way player in 2024. All teams have been waiting for the announcement from Shohei. As it drastically will shift how the free agent period will take place. At last check, the Jays, Dodgers, Giants, Angels and Cubs were all involved in the bidding. Though a dark horse was never counted out either. His signing comes six years after his initial free agent signing with the Los Angeles Angels.

Ohtani will be a transformative piece in the lineup. A career .274/.366/.556 hitter, he’s stepped up his offensive game in recent seasons. In 2023, he hit .304/.412/.654 with 26 2Bs, 8 3Bs and 44 Home Runs. He also contributed 95 RBIs, 20 SBs and 91 BBs to the Angels lineup. He unanimously was named the 2023 American League MVP. Since 2021, only Aaron Judge, Kyle Schwarber and Matt Olson have hit more than Ohtani’s 124 home runs. Only Judge, Trout and Yordan Alvarez have topped Ohtani’s massive 157 wRC+ (indicating that he’s been 57% better than a league average hitter after weighting for home park and league run-scoring environment).

Even with Ohtani and Mike Trout on the Angels, they failed to make the playoffs all six years. He missed several weeks toward the end of the 2023 season with both an Oblique Strain and an Elbow Injury. The previous injury will keep him off the mound during the 2024 season. He underwent TJ Surgery and is expected to return to pitching in 2025.

Now that Shohei Ohtani has signed with the Dodgers. The teams who missed out on him will likely revert to their plan B. That could include free agents such as Japanese star Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 2019 MVP Cody Bellinger, 2023 Cy-Young Winner Blake Snell, Closer Josh Hader and many others.

The deal is reportedly for 10 years, $700 Million. The deal includes no opt-outs. According to ESPN, “the majority” of Ohtani’s salary will be deferred in order to mitigate what the Dodgers are charged toward their competitive balance tax payroll on a yearly basis, giving them more freedom to add to their payroll over the life of Ohtani’s contract.

“I pledge to always do what’s best for the team and always continue to give it my all to be the best version of myself. Until the last day of my playing career, I want to continue to strive forward not only for the Dodgers but for the baseball world,” Ohtani wrote on his Instagram.

More to come. Refresh for Updates.

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