Los Angeles Angels star Shohei Ohtani is expected to reach free agency after the World Series.
There is a minimal chance he doesn’t reach the market and signs an extension instead, but it’s just unlikely: a player of his caliber should, and probably will test the open market and start a bidding war.
People in the baseball universe have talked about him shattering MLB’s biggest contract, worth $426.5 million and signed by his teammate Mike Trout in 2019, and he will do that.
The question is by how much.
Is he worth $500 million?
Is he worth $600 million?
What do fellow players say?
AP Sports asked them, and if it were up to most of them, they would break the bank for the unique talent.
How much do MLB All-Stars think Shohei Ohtani will make this offseason? $500 million? $600 million?
"I don’t even know how to put a number on that," Freddie Freeman said. "We’ll all find out together.”https://t.co/198UbkrSdb pic.twitter.com/iSbfwhQE5g
— AP Sports (@AP_Sports) July 11, 2023
Salvador Perez of the Kansas City Royals said Ohtani should get $600 million, without hesitation.
When asked why, he said he costs $300 million hitting, and $300 million pitching.
“He is playing two different positions (pitcher and DH) and doing it at an elite level. I don’t want to put a number on it,” Texas Rangers star Marcus Semien, who got $175 million himself two offseasons ago, said.
“You gotta pay him as a pitcher, and you gotta pay him as a DH”, saves legend Kenley Jansen explained.
Ohtani has a 3.32 ERA as a pitcher, and leads the league with 32 homers as a hitter, making him both an ace and the most dangerous slugger in the game right now.
“I don’t even know what you can pay him! He is a unicorn. We’ll all find out together,” Freddie Freeman, who got $162 million from the Los Angeles Dodgers in March 2022, stated.
Toronto Blue Jays closer Jordan Romano had one of the most hilarious answers: “I’m giving him ten years, $600 million. Make him happy,” he said.
Fellow MLB players want Ohtani to get what his talent level indicates.
And that is, in case you haven’t been paying attention, a lot of money.
NEXT: Ken Rosenthal Discusses Shohei Ohtani's Deadline Status