The Los Angeles Angels have reportedly taken Shohei Ohtani off the trade market and will look to be buyers at the trade deadline. This is a surprising decision for much of the MLB world who expected Ohtani to be on the move.
He is undoubtedly the best player in baseball at the moment, but his expiring contract made him a tempting asset for the Angels to trade. Now, he will be staying in Anaheim for the rest of 2023.
Ohtani has often stated that he wants to play for a winning team, which the Angels have not been in his tenure. This led many to think he will be leaving the team when his contract expires, but the Angels clearly have different ideas. They must believe the team is close enough to a playoff spot that it is worth going all in.
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Sports Illustrated’s Tom Verducci broke the news that Ohtani will not be traded this season on Twitter:
“Shohei Ohtani is off the trade market, a source familiar to the Angels’ decision told SI’s Tom Verducci. Los Angeles, four games off a wild-card spot, will instead make a push for the postseason” – Sports Illustrated
This is an extremely risky move for the Angels, who are hopeful they can finally end their playoff drought.
Do the Los Angeles Angels and Shohei Ohtani have a chance to make the postseason in 2023?
The fact that fans have only seen Mike Trout in the playoffs once in his career is arguably terrible for the sport. One of the best players in MLB for many years only had one crack at a championship. Now, the Angels are attempting to beef up their roster and make a playoff push.
Fans like Jomboy just want to see how Shohei Ohtani does under the bright lights of the postseason:
“Make the playoffs!!! Give us some moments” – Jomboy
With arguably the two best players in the league on their roster, it is surprising to see the Angels missing the playoffs.