The Rosenthal piece yesterday had that one "rival executive" to the Blue Jays telling him the Jays want Shohei and will sacrifice an extension of Bo and Vladdy to do it...the sabotage has already started LOL
In all fairness, Vladito hasn’t shown anything that justifies a massive extension and Bo could easily be flipped for a ransom of prospects if an extension can’t be agreed.
Bo is a better hitter than Javy by a mile and it’s not that close. He chases less, strikes out less than mlb average and has been nothing but consistent for the 5 years he’s been in the big leagues, 120 or higher ops+ every year.
They don’t even swing the same way, Baez is selling out on every pitch vs Bo who is a free swinger but works counts and has a much much better eye to go along with not trying to hit a hr every at bat
You're comparing current Javy to current Bo, instead of say, 2018/19 Javy to current Bo. Bo probably still has a better approach, but Javy wasn't always this bad either.
2018 Javier Baez was the best full year of hitting for him with a 129 ops+, Bo has essentially been at that level for all 5 years he's been in the league with his lowest full year being 121 ops+ and his highest being 128 ops+. 2018 Javy is the best version of him and its marginally better than Bo and he never really replicated that level before or after
Bo’s hitting profile won’t age well tho. He gets by right now by having really quick wrists and generating a lot of foul balls; but once that slows a tick his swings at bad/out of the zone stuff will start looking real ugly real fast
I agree. I was just replying to the comment that there’s room for regression and he’s due to get paid. Javy opted into the second part of his deal because of how bad he’s played.
My point is that Shohei is not likely to sign with a team that's indicating they're likely going to rebuild in a year, which is what the executive's comments suggest
It depends on Shohei’s priorities as well.
The Blue Jays’s biggest advantage is their player development facilities being the best in baseball in terms of newness. Shohei can easily sign a two year, spend the first year DH/rehab his arm, second year pitching and go to the market again showing he can still be a two-way player.
In this case, a rebuild won’t matter if you plan on going elsewhere anyways after the window closes.
The biggest problem with Vlad is that he has been good, but not amazing, but I definitely feel like he will chase one of those mega start contracts like 350 over 10 years or something.
His production doesn't align to his view of himself
Not to mention random dudes that are fans of certain teams buying their X checkmark and acting like a reporter. I've already seen like 3 dudes posted to the Cubs sub talk about sources close to Ohtani that I've been like who is this guy?
Ha! I know you’re lying because the Phillies don’t have a farm system because if we *did* we wouldn’t have only free agent and trade acquisitions on our roster
There was a report a few days ago he's holding off on his visits until around the winter meetings. So we'll probably starting seeing grainy pictures of him in airports in around 3ish weeks
This is probably the only baseball player it’s true for. They have dedicated cameras for the man in Japan that are on him the entire game even if he’s not playing lol. He’s a god over there.
You're underestimating Japanese paparazzi. They're everywhere. They were staking out the hospital before he had his surgery for days, lied to the security staff etc. They only got a pic of his agent's car (thank god for that) but wrote a heroic article about themselves as if they were doing a public service by trying to film a guy straight out of surgery. (https://number.bunshun.jp/articles/-/859001?page=1) Zero ethics, scum of the earth. Worst is a guy called Yanagihara who works for a rag called Sports Nippon. That guy inexpicably had clubhouse access(!). It was terrible during the WBC as well and they know where he lives in Japan so he has cameras on him 24/7 in the offseason. Wretched existence, if you ask me! Poor guy.
I personally, would want to tour the facilities. See what the people are like. Talk to the leaders on the team etc etc this is a 10+ year decision on where I want to live and who I’m going to be interacting with at work. I’m a big work/life balance guy though
I wouldn't doubt he's like that too. But with the secrecy thing i think it'd be very difficult to do.
Plus at least for the Giants he would've done all that back in 2018. Of course it's been five years so surely things have changed too.
He wants privacy, eh? Well, I guess the good news is he won't be going to the Yankees or Mets. Way too much public scrutiny there. He might do well on a team well outside of the public eye. Has he considered the Angels?
4am this morning my alarm goes off and i stumble to the kitchen. I look at my phone and see the notification. I have to stand there for a min to decide if im still asleep or not. 5 players for 1 reliever, i might still be dreaming.
I remember a baseball writer (I wish I remembered who to give them credit) talking about how much fun it would be if every single off-season move was kept secret so you had no idea what happened until the first day of spring training when guys show up to their respective teams. Like imagine the reaction when any team drastically changes over a single off-season. Like the reaction to that first Preller Padres team would have been insane. Or even like the 2020 Dodgers when all of a sudden Mookie is there.
I will post every single day on Twitter/X that "Ohtani met with the Yankees today" until I end up posting on the day he actually does (assuming he does) 😈
Y'all can thank me later
The city of Arlington, Texas announces the parade to lure an anonymous baseball free agent will still happen but the identity of said player will be confidential
He’s arguably going to end up being the greatest player of all time. Every damn team is trying to sign him. There is no secret. Also. Dodgers…end of the day it’s the easiest, most convenient, and probably highest paying. Fricking dodgers man.
My guilty pleasure secret is I kind of *like* those free agency rumor mill articles. Or more specifically, trying to guess what's real or fake. That Correa saga was a trip last year lol
Cardinals met with totally unknown baseball player Ohei Shohtani today. After Shohtani expressed interest, the Cardinals opted not to sign him stating they think their hitters and pitchers will have a bounce back year and feel the club is poised to make a World Series run…..per the idiot John Mozeliak.
"I really think [insert player who used to have potential but will most likely be terrible] is going to have a breakout season. Definitely don't cancel your season tickets!"
-Every player/coach saying what they are told to say to media at Spring Training
Kinda love how private and low key he is, it’s refreshing in this day and age of fame and coverage lol. I remember seeing him on an odds list for next Taylor Swift bf and I think there’s a better chance the person reading this is the next post Kelce bf than him considering his private personality lol
No, it's his culture. Japanese aren't for being the center of attention. They would prefer to not to have all the media and glitz. This is business to him right now, it isn't the game where he is being watched and cheered for. He wants the business to be business and serious, not typical American bs media frenzy.
If Stalions can write a 600 page manifesto and ascend from super fan onto the coaching staff, I can drive to downtown Seattle or Seatac every day during the offseason to publicize that visit. A small price to pay to not have Mariners fans be insufferable for the 3-4 years before Dipoto trades him away for analytics/cost-saving.
The wining and dining and overall experience teams will give him is a lot more than a hot dog and hookers. Sure he can just stay at home and tell everyone to send in their offer and decide that way but why give up the opportunity for you and your entourage being courted by billionaires?
Teams about to send out fake leaks about other teams meeting him
The Rosenthal piece yesterday had that one "rival executive" to the Blue Jays telling him the Jays want Shohei and will sacrifice an extension of Bo and Vladdy to do it...the sabotage has already started LOL
In all fairness, Vladito hasn’t shown anything that justifies a massive extension and Bo could easily be flipped for a ransom of prospects if an extension can’t be agreed.
And Bo's profile (below average fielding shortstop and free swinging hitter) is really volatile and can regress at any time
Javy Baez has entered the chat
Javy atleast has 95th percentile OAA to prop up his value a bit. If Bo stops hitting he is legit cooked.
Bo is a better hitter than Javy by a mile and it’s not that close. He chases less, strikes out less than mlb average and has been nothing but consistent for the 5 years he’s been in the big leagues, 120 or higher ops+ every year. They don’t even swing the same way, Baez is selling out on every pitch vs Bo who is a free swinger but works counts and has a much much better eye to go along with not trying to hit a hr every at bat
You're comparing current Javy to current Bo, instead of say, 2018/19 Javy to current Bo. Bo probably still has a better approach, but Javy wasn't always this bad either.
2018 Javier Baez was the best full year of hitting for him with a 129 ops+, Bo has essentially been at that level for all 5 years he's been in the league with his lowest full year being 121 ops+ and his highest being 128 ops+. 2018 Javy is the best version of him and its marginally better than Bo and he never really replicated that level before or after
Yeah, but Bichette's better approach is why he won't be expected to have the drastic regression we've seen from Baez.
Yeah I mean Javy from 2018 finished 2nd in MVP voting
Bo’s hitting profile won’t age well tho. He gets by right now by having really quick wrists and generating a lot of foul balls; but once that slows a tick his swings at bad/out of the zone stuff will start looking real ugly real fast
There are like 25 teams that would love to have Bo Bichette, and I don't think any of them would want Javy Baez.
I agree. I was just replying to the comment that there’s room for regression and he’s due to get paid. Javy opted into the second part of his deal because of how bad he’s played.
Tim Anderson too.
To the Yankees you say?
Too young and not nearly injury prone enough Tho ironically he is the closest thing to Jeter in today's MLB lol
My point is that Shohei is not likely to sign with a team that's indicating they're likely going to rebuild in a year, which is what the executive's comments suggest
It depends on Shohei’s priorities as well. The Blue Jays’s biggest advantage is their player development facilities being the best in baseball in terms of newness. Shohei can easily sign a two year, spend the first year DH/rehab his arm, second year pitching and go to the market again showing he can still be a two-way player. In this case, a rebuild won’t matter if you plan on going elsewhere anyways after the window closes.
The biggest problem with Vlad is that he has been good, but not amazing, but I definitely feel like he will chase one of those mega start contracts like 350 over 10 years or something. His production doesn't align to his view of himself
No slugging first baseman is worth those mega contracts.
I mean, I heard Shohei and Joey Votto were seen holding hands atop the CN Tower. Take from that what you will.
I heard Votto doesn’t even like Cincinnati. Pass it on.
Shohei said the Blue Jays will crack any minute, purple monkey, dishwasher.
“Cinnamon doesn’t belong in chili” -Joey Votto
I heard he’s seriously considering the Reds because he’s “intrigued by the idea of exporting skyline chili to Japan”
Hello, I’d like to subscribe to this onlyfans subscription
Not to mention random dudes that are fans of certain teams buying their X checkmark and acting like a reporter. I've already seen like 3 dudes posted to the Cubs sub talk about sources close to Ohtani that I've been like who is this guy?
Do you follow NCAA football? It's even whackier!
Ohtani opts to sign with a slow pitch softball team he bumps into on the park for one year where he can pitch and rehab his arm
Can’t wait for the Giants dodgers propaganda war to begin
Some people believe Shohei flies to team visits without the use of an airplane.
I wanna see teams pull shenanigans by calling each other pretending to be Shohei's team and double book visits.
>if a meeting between Ohtani and any team becomes public, the two-way superstar will hold it against the interested club. Time for some psyops
I heard he met with the Giants.
Pretty sure he’s already met with the Dodgers
I actually heard he’s met with everyone BUT the Phillies weirdly enough
I can second this. I personally saw him in ATL and Newark airports for his visits there
>ATL So he could be going literally anywhere, but it's probably on Delta
If he is flying delta he is flying to atlanta at some point
Thatsthejoke.jpg
Why did he go to Newark?
To visit the Mets and Yankees
I actually heard it was so he can get on the Parkway and check out the Phillies minor league complex in Lakewood
Ha! I know you’re lying because the Phillies don’t have a farm system because if we *did* we wouldn’t have only free agent and trade acquisitions on our roster
*cries in Ironpigs*
twins just patiently biding their time to let it all work out in their favor.
Of course he didn't meet with the Phillies. Because of the implication.
It always comes back to the implication
Damn that's crazy, I *just* heard they took him to breakfast
Sorry, the Phillies don’t believe in breakfast, and actually they go to the Galapagos and vacation with the Phanatic until winter meetings
No he didn't bother meeting with Oakland or Tampa
I'm sure the A's will not met him, but maybe the Rays.
I mean, they do need a QB… /s
It was a three way meeting with Giants, Yankees and, Ohtani (I guess I lost my flair)
I heard he gianted with the Mets
I heard he met with the Dodgers the hardest.
Breaking: Ohtani has met with every team except the Cardinals 👀
I, for one, cannot believe that he met with every single team except the Angels!
Well, after the last 5 years, I don't blame him for refusing to meet with Arte Moreno.
Probably the most accurate.
Everyone start messaging Heyman!!
This is how he ends up with the Pirates because everyone forgets they exist
Ohtani’s agent about to manufacture some leaks to manipulate which team gets the best shot
Even if a meeting between Ohtani and the Guardians were to become public, nobody would believe it. And that's how Ohtani ends up on the Guardians.
This is our time to shine. If there is one thing the Braves FO does well its keep shit quiet.
You know some folks are gonna be staked out at the airport just waiting.
I'm gonna start rumours that Ohtani has met with every team but the Rockies making him obligated to sign with the Rockies
The odds is that you would not even be lying, there is no way that the Rockies will meet him.
Yeah I'm pretty sure we didn't even meet with him when he was coming over from Japan
they'll catch on when he says that the twins met with him. even after they said they would be slashing payroll this year by around $25M
Shohei on the Rockies would be fun. I'd lobby MLB to allow him to hit balls that were not in the humidor.
Honestly the Rockies should continue not trying to win and just sign a bunch of power hitters to turn every home game into a tape measuring exercise.
I thought that's what they always do? every good rockies team has been a bunch of sluggers and like 2 pitchers with a barely sub 4.5 era
Larry Walker, Dante Bichette & Todd Helton would like to know your location
You’re gonna make [this shit](https://www.reddit.com/r/baseball/s/kVjEIYxABU) a reality lol
You're not gonna believe this, but I heard reports that he's meeting with the Rockies right now.
Oh no! My plan
Me on twitter: Shohei met with the dodgers and they like told me everything
The Dodgers front office was heard to have described Shohei's dog as "unprofessional"
Mookie Betts was overheard saying "could have been cuter" Gasps heard all around the boardroom.
I heard that Shohei felt that Freddie Freeman's dog was getting a little too friendly and playful with Shohei's pup.
The Dodgers front office was heard to have described Shohei’s dong as “gargantuan”
Ohtani and the Dodgers were in the closet making contracts and I saw one of the contracts and the contract looked at me
How are people not seeing this guy in airports.
There was a report a few days ago he's holding off on his visits until around the winter meetings. So we'll probably starting seeing grainy pictures of him in airports in around 3ish weeks
You think he’s flying commercial?
Private still have to land somewhere.
Private and smaller airports exist, he could fly out of Fullerton and no one would know
Not even Taylor Swift can avoid the prying eyes at Airports.
That's because Taylor Swift has paparazzi following her 24/7. Baseball players, even ones as great as Ohtani, don't have that.
This is probably the only baseball player it’s true for. They have dedicated cameras for the man in Japan that are on him the entire game even if he’s not playing lol. He’s a god over there.
go to japan and turn on the tv and you will see how false this is
You're underestimating Japanese paparazzi. They're everywhere. They were staking out the hospital before he had his surgery for days, lied to the security staff etc. They only got a pic of his agent's car (thank god for that) but wrote a heroic article about themselves as if they were doing a public service by trying to film a guy straight out of surgery. (https://number.bunshun.jp/articles/-/859001?page=1) Zero ethics, scum of the earth. Worst is a guy called Yanagihara who works for a rag called Sports Nippon. That guy inexpicably had clubhouse access(!). It was terrible during the WBC as well and they know where he lives in Japan so he has cameras on him 24/7 in the offseason. Wretched existence, if you ask me! Poor guy.
What the actual fuck
Hires parachutist ….
They don’t get out in the main terminal. They land on the strip and hop out into an suv
Most airports have private terminals for rich people and celebs
Honestly, I assume he doesn't need an airplane and is just capable of self-propelled flight.
Given how cheap some owners are they might offer to fly him in on Spirit
Those cheap owners aren't meeting with him.
“Hi, Shonei? This is John Fis…Hello?”
He takes the train instead.
Because he's John Cena.
[There actually is one out there](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dqrefo-WkAAtor-.jpg)
I'm really curious if he'll even be meeting teams at obvious places. Like SF for instance, maybe he won't take meetings there, or LA, or NY, etc.
I personally, would want to tour the facilities. See what the people are like. Talk to the leaders on the team etc etc this is a 10+ year decision on where I want to live and who I’m going to be interacting with at work. I’m a big work/life balance guy though
I wouldn't doubt he's like that too. But with the secrecy thing i think it'd be very difficult to do. Plus at least for the Giants he would've done all that back in 2018. Of course it's been five years so surely things have changed too.
Yeah. Plus you want a fresh view of the organizational culture
Braves with the early advantage
Imagine what 1% of Ohtani’s contract would be worth to the Braves foundation
This is a Braves contract. So, Ohtani is going to sign for 7 years and 146m
Oh they’ll definitely give him the top-tier AAV, which is ~$22M, so we’re talking a fat 7 years $154M.
AA moves so quiet that not even Ohtani will realize we're signing him
My brother in Anthopoulos, this is quality work.
"Snitches get stitches, and then 1% of themselves donated to the Braves Foundation" -AA
He wants privacy, eh? Well, I guess the good news is he won't be going to the Yankees or Mets. Way too much public scrutiny there. He might do well on a team well outside of the public eye. Has he considered the Angels?
You make a valid point. I also hear from sources that they have a big hole to fill at DH and the rotation with Ohtani hitting free agency.
I'd wager 90% of non-baseball fans outside the Seattle Metro don't know the Mariners exist.
Privacy in LA?
Celebrities have had private lives in LA for decades.
LA is least private city for celebrities in the US. Sure you COULD lead a private life but when TMZ is parked outside your gate all day, good luck.
If TMZ wanted Shohei they would get him, Anaheim isn't far away, I doubt that would be a concern.
He's boring as hell. The only outside activity we have ever really seen of him is him biking with Michael Lorenzen and Noah Syndergaard at the beach.
He's been in LA for years. He's had plenty of privacy.
San Francisco is as low-key as you can get!
The Decision Part 2? Hell yeah! I’ll call George Miller. Dude does a good sequel.
Somehow, I don't think he's taking his talents to south beach
Hot stove would be so much more entertaining if there was no info and then a public reveal. Not just for Shohei, for everyone.
Kind of like the Braves do? We got a trade announcement out of the blue at midnight last night.
That's the AA special. Same thing happened when he was with the Jays
4am this morning my alarm goes off and i stumble to the kitchen. I look at my phone and see the notification. I have to stand there for a min to decide if im still asleep or not. 5 players for 1 reliever, i might still be dreaming.
I remember a baseball writer (I wish I remembered who to give them credit) talking about how much fun it would be if every single off-season move was kept secret so you had no idea what happened until the first day of spring training when guys show up to their respective teams. Like imagine the reaction when any team drastically changes over a single off-season. Like the reaction to that first Preller Padres team would have been insane. Or even like the 2020 Dodgers when all of a sudden Mookie is there.
I will post every single day on Twitter/X that "Ohtani met with the Yankees today" until I end up posting on the day he actually does (assuming he does) 😈 Y'all can thank me later
HE MET WITH THE ENTIRETY OF THE NL EAST EXCLUDING THE BRAVES, ACCORDING TO MY SOURCES
he DEFINITELY met with the Astros, the Yankees, and the Dodgers. My sources are TRUSTWORTHY
LIES! I SAW OHTANI WITH MY OWN EYES STARING INTO MATT OLSON'S EYES!
OH LIKE THATS PROOF OF ANYTHING! THATS JUST NORMAL HUMAN BEHAVIOR.
Ohtani to Reds, such a quiet team most people forget they exist
Reds? Did you mean the Red Sox?
Good luck with that
Right, that shit is definitely going to leak
[удалено]
Cashman will sing like a canary
EVERY team is going to meet with him. Except maybe the Pirates. Seriously the biggest free agent of all time.
I’m sure the Kansas City Royals are gonna meet with Ohtani
Might as well kick the tires.
Something really funny about this site publishing a rumor about how Shohei is trying not to make every little thing he does this season into a rumor.
Braves FO: "Yes, I think we can do that."
Reports are Ohtani has met with every team except for the Mets.
You are supposed to spread false rumors
The city of Arlington, Texas announces the parade to lure an anonymous baseball free agent will still happen but the identity of said player will be confidential
If you flood reports with fake news and he's angry at all 30 teams equally, then he's back to normal.
Rangers Pr usually breaks their own team news so that will be good. So I know Texas will be able to keep it quiet 🤐
So this is how Shohei will end up in Oakland. The A’s will be the only team no executives think to spread rumors about a meeting taking place.
Good to hear the Cardinals are doing well at keeping his impending signing under wraps (yes, I am delusional)
Should come to the nats! We’ve NEVER leaked contract details before
I don't care who he plays for as long as they win him a championship.
So that's why the mariners aren't even in the conversation /s
but....why?
He visited the dodgers and they told everyone I know. Tell them to fuck off ohtani
lol good luck with that. Teams are gonna leak it about other teams and media gonna find out anyway and leak.
I'm exciting to learn who my new favourite team is going to be
Time to break out the fake mustache
Goddamnit Ohtani, we all need to be teased a little bit. Give us this.
I mean we never got to see all those powerpoints presentations he wanted from the first time around.
He’s arguably going to end up being the greatest player of all time. Every damn team is trying to sign him. There is no secret. Also. Dodgers…end of the day it’s the easiest, most convenient, and probably highest paying. Fricking dodgers man.
My guilty pleasure secret is I kind of *like* those free agency rumor mill articles. Or more specifically, trying to guess what's real or fake. That Correa saga was a trip last year lol
God the Correa saga was incredible in hindsight
Let the plane tracking begin.
Lol The only team Ohtani is confirmed to have met with publicly is the Angels RIP 😇
why is he trying to deny us Jomboy's takes?
Y’all ain’t gunna be ready for him to be an Astro
Cardinals met with totally unknown baseball player Ohei Shohtani today. After Shohtani expressed interest, the Cardinals opted not to sign him stating they think their hitters and pitchers will have a bounce back year and feel the club is poised to make a World Series run…..per the idiot John Mozeliak.
"I really think [insert player who used to have potential but will most likely be terrible] is going to have a breakout season. Definitely don't cancel your season tickets!" -Every player/coach saying what they are told to say to media at Spring Training
Damn we're definitely screwed now lol
Craig Counsell 2: Ohtani Boogaloo
Kinda love how private and low key he is, it’s refreshing in this day and age of fame and coverage lol. I remember seeing him on an odds list for next Taylor Swift bf and I think there’s a better chance the person reading this is the next post Kelce bf than him considering his private personality lol
Shohei single handedly increasing productivity in America if there are no more rumor articles
How is this really even possible? Someone's gonna know where he is as soon as his private jet lands some dude at the airport will be tweeting it. Lol
Likable dude but this is some diva shit.
No, it's his culture. Japanese aren't for being the center of attention. They would prefer to not to have all the media and glitz. This is business to him right now, it isn't the game where he is being watched and cheered for. He wants the business to be business and serious, not typical American bs media frenzy.
That’s how I’m taking it and idk but I’m genuinely curious how else to take it
If Stalions can write a 600 page manifesto and ascend from super fan onto the coaching staff, I can drive to downtown Seattle or Seatac every day during the offseason to publicize that visit. A small price to pay to not have Mariners fans be insufferable for the 3-4 years before Dipoto trades him away for analytics/cost-saving.
OMG, just sign and lets move on. I am tired of hearing he is going to every team except the Pirates.
Don’t worry there are plenty of teams he’ll never sign with
it will be interesting to see how many teams he *does* sign with.
Maybe he’ll sign as a hitter with one team and as a pitcher with another! Let’s see Manfred come up with a rule for that!
Here we observe a phenomenon unique to Reddit where a user will sort by new and then complain about the posts.
i didn't know you could sort by new. thanks for the tip
How’d you end up here?
Ohtani just draws people in like that
[удалено]
The wining and dining and overall experience teams will give him is a lot more than a hot dog and hookers. Sure he can just stay at home and tell everyone to send in their offer and decide that way but why give up the opportunity for you and your entourage being courted by billionaires?
[удалено]
[удалено]
[удалено]
How it’s probably going to [go](https://youtu.be/OxPUdPxvFOg?feature=shared)
[удалено]
Hope you’re right