There is a local forecast that Shohei Ohtani (29, LA Angels), who ended the season early due to injury, will choose to transfer rather than stay with the Angels next season. Analysis suggests that the fact that the locker room was packed first prior to announcing the end of the season was related to this.
According to MLB.com, the official Major League Baseball website, the Angels officially announced Ohtani’s season out by placing him on the 10-day injured list on the 17th (Korean time). Angels general manager Perry Minassian held a press conference at Angel Stadium and said, “Ohtani continues to feel pain in his right side muscle. “He has therefore decided to end this season early,” he announced.
Otani is scheduled to be on the operating table soon. General Manager Minassian said, “Ohtani will undergo elbow surgery for the 2024 season. However, I do not know yet whether the surgery will be a ligament joint surgery (Tommy John surgery) or whether it will be a surgery on another area.”
Ohtani, who doubles as a pitcher, injured his elbow while pitching in a game against the Cincinnati Reds on the 24th of last month and was prematurely dismissed. As a result of the hospital examination, his right ulnar collateral ligament was found to be damaged, and his two-hitting duties were halted. Afterwards, he concentrated only on batting, but complained of pain in his side during batting practice before the game against Baltimore on the 5th, and was unable to play in 11 consecutive games. Contrary to his Angels manager Phil Nevin’s expectation that he would be able to recover in a day or two, the injury was prolonged. .
Meanwhile, the day before, Otani’s locker in the Angel Stadium토토사이트 clubhouse was spotted being cleaned up, drawing attention to his future plans. While multiple local media outlets predicted that Ohtani would be out for the season, the Angels announced the early end of the season the next day, as expected, with Ohtani listed on the injured list.
Ohtani’s journey with the Angels ended with an injury. Now, attention is focused on his destination as he becomes a free agent next season. Japan’s Tokyo Sports said, “After cleaning out his locker, Otani’s free agent transfer to another club in the upcoming off-season is becoming a fait accompli. “The prospect that he will leave the Angels like this is getting stronger,” he said about the local atmosphere.
Regarding the cleaning of Ohtani’s locker, the Angels team said, “It seems that Ohtani made this decision because he wanted to return to the team quickly. “Even if the season is out, we need to quickly prepare for the 2024 season, so we packed up quickly,” he said. “It is clear that we will complete the right elbow surgery as soon as possible and prepare for next year’s season. He expressed a positive opinion, saying, “He is one of us.”
However, Tokyo Sports said, “There are voices among major league officials saying that the Angels’ outlook is too optimistic,” and “Ohtani said, ‘I want to have a brilliant September,’ but the team continued to give up games. There were many injuries, and repeated failures to reinforce forces resulted in poor results. To make matters worse, he struck a pessimistic tone, saying, “On the 15th, even the possibility of winning the district was completely eliminated.”
He then quoted a major league official saying, “The Angels are trying desperately to cover it up, but it is clear that a gap has developed between Ohtani and the club. He will leave the Angels when he becomes a free agent. “As a result, the game against Oakland on September 4 will be the last game for the Angels,” he predicted.
Ohtani, who is about to enter free agency, is being mentioned as a transfer candidate by numerous clubs, including the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Yankees, San Francisco Giants, and Boston Red Sox. It is reported among the American media that Ohtani will reach the highest ever contract worth over 500 million dollars (approximately 665.5 billion won).
The above official predicted Ohtani’s transfer next season, saying, “Ohtani packed his bags and left without saying goodbye to his teammates because he did not want to leave any regrets behind the Angels.”