Shohei Ohtani destination predicted by the magic eight ball

Los Angeles Dodgers

When we first learned Shohei Ohtani was coming to MLB from Japan, the frontrunners were believed to be the New York Yankees. It sounded great. The most successful franchise in baseball history, the bright lights and big city of New York, the short porch in right field to aim for when he’s the DH between starts.

Ohtani could follow in the footsteps of former Japanese players in the Bronx such as Hideki Matsui and Masahiro Tanaka. In fact, he could be a combination of Matsui and Tanaka, hitting home runs one night and striking out a dozen the next. And by playing in New York, he could make up for his low salary with big endorsement deals.

Ohtani decided against the Yankees, and GM Brian Cashman suggested a West Coast or smaller market team would be a more likely destination for the Japanese star. Suddenly, the most prominent name left was the Los Angeles Dodgers, a franchise as historical (if not successful) as the Yankees.

The Dodgers had the West Coast part down, but not the small market part. Still, with a rotation that includes Clayton Kershaw, Ohtani wouldn’t have to be the staff ace. He could easily slide into the number two or number three spot and let Kershaw take the lead. Surely the Dodgers have a great chance of signing Ohtani, right? Let’s check with the Magic 8 Ball.

Magic 8 Ball: Will Shohei Ohtani sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers?

Magic 8 Ball answer: Very doubtful.

Well, there it is. No dice for the Dodgers. The Magic 8 Ball probably knows that Los Angeles is too big a market for Ohtani and having the city surrounded by raging wildfires perhaps doesn’t help.