In the week leading up to the Major League Baseball trade deadline, the Angels definitively chose to take presumptive Most Valuable Player awardee Shohei Ohtani off the market. The conscious decision was no doubt arrived at following a thorough evaluation of the pros and cons of keeping or letting go of the sport’s best and most impactful athlete, and yet remained subject to second-guessing. Under normal circumstances, it would have been a no-brainer. Unfortunately, nothing in the red and blue’s situation is “normal,” hence the continued scrutiny even from casual observers.
To be sure, the Angels would have been able to benefit from sending Ohtani elsewhere in favor of a significant haul. There was no way for them to get equal value, of course; the generational talent is superior both as a pitcher and as a hitter, and they would have been compelled to take a discount. That said, any intake of assets prior to today’s deadline figures to be better — make that much, much better — than a mere compensatory draft pick off a qualifying offer at the end of the season. If nothing else, the influx of new blood would have jump-started a rebuild that otherwise becomes more complicated.
On the other hand, it’s likewise fair to argue that the Angels ultimately had no recourse but to take a risk on Ohtani agreeing to extend his tenure after the current campaign. He had been, and is still, making history, and far be it from them to be tagged as employers who missed out on being part of the journey — not by ill luck, but by choice. Perhaps the path forward would have been clearer were they not in contention for a wild card berth. With him on the roster, anything is possible once they make the playoffs. Which, in a nutshell, is why they immediately pivoted to being buyers once they stopped dangling him to potential suitors.
The intent is clear: The Angels want to show Ohtani they can foster a winning environment. They’re keen on proving their willingness to spend as much as they need to in order to provide him with the requisite support. To their credit, they’re pulling out all the stops for the purpose. Franchise owner Arte Moreno and general manager Perry Minasian have left no proverbial stone unturned and have spared no expense bringing in complementary pieces for their projected postseason run. It’s a gamble, to be sure, but one they’re taking because, well, it’s also the most reasonable one. And if they fail in their goal, at least they cannot say they didn’t try.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and human resources management, corporate communications, and business development.
