Rumor: Angels Reportedly Considering Ohtani Trade, A Reversal From Last Week

[Brock Beauchamp]

Well, it's happening. The Angels, fringe contenders for an American League Wild Card berth who saw Mike Trout go down with an injury a couple of weeks ago, are now reportedly considering trading Shohei "The Best Baseball Player on the Planet" Ohtani.

This isn't terribly surprising, as the Angels' postseason hopes largely rode on the health of Ohtani and Trout as a duo. And the Angels will be loathe to let Ohtani walk into free agency without getting something in return... or at least that should be their mindset right now.

It's unlikely the Twins will enter this mix, as they likely have neither the prospect horses nor the intestinal fortitude to pay the price of acquiring a couple of months of Shohei Ohtani.

But merely putting Ohtani on the market up-ends it like no other player. This will have far-reaching ramifications across the trade market should Shohei end up being traded.

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[jctwins]

The Twins. haha.

[CRF]

Think the Halos would be interested in Gallo and Kep?

[Parfigliano]

5 minutes ago, CRF said:

Think the Halos would be interested in Gallo and Kep?

Throw in Miranda and Pagan.  

[John Bonnes]

This was inevitable, unless they go on a helluva run here over the next two weeks (and maybe even then). It makes zero sense to hold on to him on the off chance he might pick them over the half dozen big spenders that are going to be bidding for him. I'm surprised there was even a question about it, TBH. 

[Brock Beauchamp]

12 minutes ago, John Bonnes said:

This was inevitable, unless they go on a helluva run here over the next two weeks (and maybe even then). It makes zero sense to hold on to him on the off chance he might pick them over the half dozen big spenders that are going to be bidding for him. I'm surprised there was even a question about it, TBH. 

The reason there's a question about it is because "Los Angeles Angels", who are essentially the Rockies with a bigger wallet.

[SpicyGarvSauce]

Take anyone they want - and I mean that.

[Mike Sixel]

I'm guessing Seattle or TX or Dodgers....

[Vanimal46]

17 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

I'm guessing Seattle or TX or Dodgers....

Yeah, a solid top 3 there. Will be interesting if they trade within the division. I’m rooting for chaos and Baltimore going all in this year. 

[Linus]

How do you value two months of Ohtani?  For that matter how do you project his free agent contract?  He is such a unicorn it makes it really hard to assess. Will be fun to watch. 

[dxpavelka]

You seldom win a trade in which the best player in the trade ends up on a different team.

 

[cmoss84]

Yankees will get him. Yuck.

[RickOShea]

2 hours ago, Brock Beauchamp said:

The reason there's a question about it is because "Los Angeles Angels", who are essentially the Rockies with a bigger wallet.

The question is "how many dollars do we lose based upon the declaration of trading him.  this was nothing more than trying to squeeze a few more dollars from fans who were dreaming of the impractical or the least probabi;ity of him staying an Angel.  To paraphrase Lloyd Christmas, " Are you telling me there's a chance'?

[nicksaviking]

I'm guessing the Dodgers will want him most, but the Angels will be reluctant to trade him to the cross town rivals, which likely would make them the favorite to sign him long term. I bet they're the rare team that is more worried about regional competitiveness over divisional and league competitiveness. 

Man, how have the Angels squandered the formative years of two of the greatest baseball players we'll ever see. The Twins recent failures pale in magnitude to the complete ineptitude the Angels have shown the last decade and a half. Not at all giving the Twins a pass, it's just insane what the Angels have done, or not done I guess.

[Nine of twelve]

1 hour ago, Linus said:

How do you value two months of Ohtani?  For that matter how do you project his free agent contract?  He is such a unicorn it makes it really hard to assess. Will be fun to watch. 

Yeah, it's like the home on Lake Minnetonka that has no comps for the realtor or potential buyer to go by. It's more like, if you have to ask the price, you can't afford it.

[Nine of twelve]

6 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

I'm guessing the Dodgers will want him most, but the Angels will be reluctant to trade him to the cross town rivals, which likely would make them the favorite to sign him long term. I bet they're the rare team that is more worried about regional competitiveness over divisional and league competitiveness. 

Man, how have the Angels squandered the formative years of two of the greatest baseball players we'll ever see. The Twins recent failures pale in magnitude to the complete ineptitude the Angels have shown the last decade and a half.

Don't forget about the Pujols contract when you discuss the ineptitude of the Angels. That probably hamstrung their ability to field a competitive roster more than any other single factor. The whole thing is a classic example of an owner who knows and understands way less than he thinks he does.

[D.C Twins]

They should absolutely trade him for assets. It does not preclude them from signing him in the offseason!

[nicksaviking]

9 minutes ago, Nine of twelve said:

Don't forget about the Pujols contract when you discuss the ineptitude of the Angels. That probably hamstrung their ability to field a competitive roster more than any other single factor. The whole thing is a classic example of an owner who knows and understands way less than he thinks he does.

Yeah, no idea what's going on there. Four different GM's since they last won a playoff series (I know, Twins fans should shut their mouth about that) and five GM's since that World Series team. Plus an open wallet as far as free agency goes.

Has to start at the top.

[Fire Dan Gladden]

Here is the question Twins fans:

Asked in all sincerity what would do you think it would take to Ohtani to the Twins?  I see two possible package scenarios:

1) Ohtani as a rental (at least 2 top prospects plus a handful middle ground guys)
2) Ohtani agreeing to an extension prior to the trade (would probably be something like 3 top prospects plus Kiriloff and possibly Ober).

I want to say zero percent chance the Twins do this, but signing Correa has thrown all of my assumptions out the window. 

[NotAboutWinning]

An Ohtani trade would fit Falvey's MO perfectly. Make a big news splash highlighting how smart he is, overpay and decimate the farm team! Unfortunately (or fortunately depending on how you view it) last year's deadline deals left the Twins with nothing much of value left to trade.

[TopGunn#22]

One way or another, I see him on the Dodgers.  Either they wait for free agency and choose not to give up anything OR, they make a deal this season.  Here's why they could make a deal this season.  The Dodgers have a winning culture and this year despite letting a ton of players go in free agency they are still in the playoff picture.  Supposedly, the Dodgers let Turner, Bellinger, Kenley Jansen and others walk in order to free up salary to go after Ohtani.  But even though they are a playoff team, the Dodgers are a shell of what they've had in the not too distant past.  They need Ohtani to put them over the top and become a serious contender.  I think the Dodgers make a play to give Ohtani a taste of playoff baseball and maybe even a World Series championship.  That could seal the deal of Ohtani sticking with the Dodgers after this season.  

[Jerr]

15 hours ago, D.C Twins said:

They should absolutely trade him for assets. It does not preclude them from signing him in the offseason!

Wouldn't that be fun to see happen?

[KirbyDome89]

22 hours ago, Vanimal46 said:

Yeah, a solid top 3 there. Will be interesting if they trade within the division. I’m rooting for chaos and Baltimore going all in this year. 

Low-key rooting for TX because I want to catch him at TF this year. 

[NeverSeenATwinsPlayoffWin]

The market for Ohtani may be a little thinner than you'd expect with him being the best player in the game.

The AL West has a couple of suitors that make sense (Seattle & Texas), but I highly doubt they will trade in division or to the cross-town Dodgers.

The Braves, Astros, and Marlins do not have the minor-league talent to get a deal done. The Reds, Orioles, Red Sox, and Diamondbacks are emerging from rebuilds/retools and aren't going to substantially shorten their windows for a rental. 

The Rays and Brewers are fits in theory, but are unlikely to extend Ohtani. With them being small-market, it doesn't make much sense for them to give up top prospects.

That leaves the Blue Jays, Yankees, and  Giants as likely suitors. If the Angels are willing to trade in division or to the Dodgers, that's still only six teams that are willing/able to pull of an Ohtani trade. Personally, the Giants make the most sense, as the Blue Jays have four above average starters and the Yankees may not want to move Giancarlo Stanton to the field.

[USAFChief]

My bet: Tampa Bay shocks the world and trades for Ohtani as a rental.

They have the prospects to get it done, anyone can afford 2 months of salary, and a team good enough to get max value out of adding an impact player.

Book it.

Second choice: Texas

 

 

[Nine of twelve]

47 minutes ago, USAFChief said:

My bet: Tampa Bay shocks the world and trades for Ohtani as a rental.

They have the prospects to get it done, anyone can afford 2 months of salary, and a team good enough to get max value out of adding an impact player.

Book it.

Second choice: Texas

 

 

Interesting viewpoint with a lot of merit. This would probably distance them even further from the rest of the AL, both in the regular season and the postseason. The only question is whether they have the cojones to pull the trigger.

[jjswol]

The Angels would be silly not to move him and get some good you players. 

[Mike Sixel]

I think it's Arizona. 

How about a three way trade?

Az gets sonny gray and a minor league pitcher from Minnesota, plus if they want Gallo or Kepler and any hitter not named martin from AAA.

LA gets one of the top prospects from Az and Julien and Headrick.

Mn gets Ohtani and a mid tier prospect from AZ.

Seems like too much for Minnesota to give up ... But he replaces Gray in the rotation and Kepler in right. 

[tony&rodney]

7 hours ago, Mike Sixel said:

But he replaces Gray in the rotation and Kepler in right. 

No disagreement with a trade for Ohtani, but remember that after pitching Ohtani cannot play in the field (recovery), which is why he is always the DH for the Angels. 

I would think that Ohtani is worth $50 million per year at least.  It is going to be worth following, for sure.

[Mike Sixel]

1 hour ago, tony&rodney said:

No disagreement with a trade for Ohtani, but remember that after pitching Ohtani cannot play in the field (recovery), which is why he is always the DH for the Angels. 

I would think that Ohtani is worth $50 million per year at least.  It is going to be worth following, for sure.

Ah. Right. Well, that won't work here.... Not that for one second I thought that offer would be made.