Call to the pen
Fansided

Shohei Ohtani: 3 realistic trade destinations for the reigning MVP

By Scott Henry

May 16, 2022; Arlington, Texas, USA; Los Angeles Angels designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) hits a two-run double during the first inning against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports
May 16, 2022; Arlington, Texas, USA; Los Angeles Angels designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (17) hits a two-run double during the first inning against the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
3 of 4
Next
New York Mets owner Steve Cohen
Apr 8, 2021; New York City, New York, USA; A message from New York Mets owners Steve Cohen and his wife Alex is played on the video board before an opening day game against the Miami Marlins at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /

The Mets are an entirely different team than 2017 when Shohei Ohtani chose his first team, but they did not even get a meeting with him. That aside, I can almost guarantee they will aggressively pursue him if and when the Angels decide they are listening to offers.

Payroll
This is easy to discuss. Mets owner Steve Cohen ranks as the 95th richest person in the world according to Forbes and is worth a whopping $17.4 billion. Since taking over ownership of the Mets, he has shown that he clearly does not care about luxury tax and will spend whatever it takes to field a legitimate team. Many owners hoped the new CBA would impose strict enough luxury tax penalties to dissuade this behavior, but 17.4 is a lot of billions. We don’t even need to look at the Mets payroll situation because Cohen will make it work.

Young talent
The Mets cannot offer as much as the Dodgers, but they do have some desirable trade pieces. Brett Baty got the call recently, and he would almost certainly be included in any trade package along with top prospect Francisco Alvarez. The Angels did just trade for Logan O’Hoppe from the Phillies, and he figures to be their catcher in the near future, but if you have the opportunity to land Alvarez, you should probably do that. Outside of those two, the Mets don’t have a ton to offer the Angels.

This is unlikely to happen, but it’s not out of the realm of possibility that the Angels include Anthony Rendon and his awful contract and accept a much lesser trade package. I can’t see any team going for this, but if anyone was going to, it would be the Mets. Just some food for thought.

Destination
The same concerns of the big L.A. city obviously exist in New York. Whether or not Ohtani is willing to go to a big city remains to be seen, but they do also happen to have the deepest pockets. Also I have to reiterate, he appeared to prioritize the West Coast when he initially came to MLB. His priorities may have changes, but it is concerning.

Contender
The Mets are having a breakout season this year as they are currently leading the NL East and appear to have a team primed for an October run. With Ohtani, they could potentially become the best team in the National League.

Home/Los Angeles Angels