Shohei Ohtani will follow until the number runs out. No, none of Ohtani’s home runs or strikeouts or his spectacular numbers from the field. Nothing like that.
How much is this one? Like how much his next contract will be worth.
Ohtani is among a number of players heading into their final season before becoming eligible for free agency. There is still time for signings and press conferences before Opening Day, but history shows that a new contract falls short once the actual game begins.
There’s no real precedent for placing a price on Otani’s remarkable skill, especially after baseball’s epic offseason spending spree. And that doesn’t take into account the potential business opportunities that go along with the big companies being a truly global star.
Ohtani, in his fifth year with the Los Angeles Angels last season, hit .273 with 34 homers and 95 RBI. The 2021 AL MVP also went 15-9 on the mound with a 2.33 ERA in 28 starts.
He prepared for the season by leading Japan to the World Baseball Classic Championship, defeating fellow Angels star Mike Trout in a 3–2 victory over the United States in the final.
Ohtani, who turns 29 in July, could set several records with his next contract, likely in the neighborhood of an average annual value of $45 million and possibly reaching $500 million in total.
If the Angels somehow end up out of AL West contention, Ohtani could become the top name on the trade market this summer. If the Angels are in the mix for the playoffs, the pressure is on for the team to do something before losing Otani for nothing more than a compensatory draft pick in free agency.
So yeah, definitely higher stakes with Ohtani and the Angels.
Here’s a closer look at five more players eligible for free agency after this season:
RHP Aaron Nola, Philadelphia Phillies
Nola, who turns 30 in June, went 11-13 with a 3.25 ERA in 32 starts last year for Philadelphia. He also had a career-best 235 strikeouts in 205 innings for the NL champions.
Nola was selected with the seventh overall pick by the Phillies in the 2014 amateur draft. Extension talks were held during spring training, but did not materialize.
Dave Dombrowski, president of baseball operations, said, “We’re very open-minded to trying to sign him at the end of the season.” “We hope he remains in Philly for a long time.”
3B Matt Chapman, Toronto Blue Jays
Chapman hit 36 homers and drove in 91 runs for Oakland in 2019. He was unable to duplicate that production, but the three-time Gold Glover finished with 27 homers and 76 RBI in 155 games last year in his first season with Toronto. ,
Chapman turned 30 on April 28. Long one of the game’s top fielding third basemen, he is represented by Scott Boras, who typically leads his clients in free agency.
Teoscar Hernandez, Seattle Mariners
Hernandez was acquired in a November trade with Toronto. He hit .267 with 25 homers and 77 RBI in his final year with the Blue Jays. He was very good in 2021, hitting .296 with 32 homers, 116 RBIs, and a .870 OPS.
The change of scenery could help the 30-year-old Hernandez set herself up for a big payday. He is a .357 hitter with three homers and seven RBI in 16 games at Seattle’s T-Mobile Park.
Ian Happ, Chicago Cubs
The switch-hitting Happ is coming off perhaps his best big league season yet, setting career highs with a .271 batting average, 72 RBI, and 42 doubles in 158 games. He also won his first Gold Glove and made the NL All-Star team for the first time.
Chicago had struggled to re-sign its own players in recent years, but on Monday agreed to a $35 million, three-year contract with infielder Nico Horner. Happ, 28, a first-round pick in the 2015 amateur draft, is on the executive subcommittee for the players’ union.
LHP Julio Urias, Los Angeles Dodgers
Urias, who turns 27 in August, will have a number of guys with him if he reaches free agency. He went 17–7 with an NL-low 2.16 ERA in 31 starts for the NL West champions in 2022, finishing third in NL Cy Young Award balloting. He then went 20–3 with a 2.96 ERA the previous season.
Urías is also a client of Boras, but the Dodgers have one of the largest payrolls in the majors. Los Angeles could also make a run at Ohtani, which could be a factor in his discussions with Urias’ camp.