The uncontested Angels did well with the trade of Noah Syndergaard and Raizel Iglesias.
With two consecutive MVP-type seasons, Ohtani iscertain to become the first player to make $50 million (or more) as a free agent in 2024. Aiming, and considering his astounding achievements, as the sport's true triple threat (hitting, pitching, marketing), he deserves to be the highest-paid player in the game.
Meanwhile, Angel's best chance to replenish the farm system has passed. More than half the team checked in on Ohtani, willing to trade top prospects during his 1¹/₂ year of being a two-way megastar. However, negotiations did not go well as Angels owner Arte Moreno adamantly stopped them with one day plus.
It wasn't just the Yankees. The Bold Padres have shown strong interest, and Padres GM A.J. Preller said on The Post podcast, "The Show," that some of the prospects discussed were made at the Juan Soto Megatrade. He added that it was different from what he had seen (but you can imagine the values were probably similar). However, Ōtani's trade talks barely started and were called off.
Those around the Angels believe he had one real hope of doing the right thing. It's now his Ohtani trade. But that hope vanished the day after the Post reported that the Angels were planning to look into his deal.
Really consider dealing with arguably the best player in baseball who could have given Moreno a chance had Ohtani said he wanted to decline. , believed to like the Angels for letting him do his unique things.But Ohtani has been in business for over four years, mostly in charity (his $5 million annual salary is MLB average).
Angels failed to win and Ohtani was terribly underpaid and when his salary is multiplied tenfold — with star Mike Trout and overpaid Anthony Rendon on the ledger — there's little room left under the threshold of the luxury tax that characterizes Moreno's team. .
Ohtani wants to win, but it's going to be harder if you pay him in Anaheim. Informal extension talks in the spring have run out of steam. They'll try again, but if Moreno surprises us and doesn't relent, he might really end up on the block this winter. Ordering the salaries to be waived, General Manager Perry Minassian successfully removed Syndergaard, Iglesias, and their salaries. Interest in Thor was limited — beyond the Phillies, there was the Blue Jays, while the Yankees and Mets both pursued the expensive Iglesias, but who was willing to pay the rest of his $50 million. There was also Anyway, it's a start.