Malloy: “Shotime” for Shohei Ohtani

Los Angeles Angels free agent Shohei Ohtani is a free agent. The Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, Toronto Blue Jays and Angels are in contention to sign him, according to ESPN.

December 1, 2023

By Cody Malloy

Free agent lawyer

Baseball’s biggest sensation, Shohei Ohtani, 29, is about to break the bank.

In only six seasons in the majors, Ohtani has already added quite the list of accolades to his resume, to name a few:

_ Two-time American League MVP (most recently this past 2023 season, with an absurd .304 batting average with 44 homers and 95 RBIs).

_ AL Rookie of the Year.

_ Three-time All-Star.

_ Two-time Silver Slugger.

_ 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC) champion with Japan.

Although it is way too early, Ohtani certainly has Hall of Fame potential. Baseball Reference lists Hall of Famers David Ortiz and Fred McGriff as comparable hitters through 28 years old (based on the age of the player at the start of their most recent season). Baseball Reference also lists Hall of Famer Ray Brown as a similar pitcher through 28 years old.

It is anticipated the highly touted free agent will soon sign the highest valued contract in MLB history. ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported that the value of Ohtani’s next contract is expected to “surge well beyond” $500 million (US). If true, Ohtani’s contract would be the highest guaranteed contract ever in North American sports.

Legal consideration

What percentage of Ohtani’s anticipated record-breaking contract will be insured?

The fact that Ohtani is a legitimate two-way player makes him special (mind you, given the injury to his throwing elbow in 2023, his projections as a pitcher moving forward are highly uncertain). The fact his native homeland is Japan takes his super stardom to a whole new level.

Let me start with a personal anecdote to set the stage.

My firsthand observations of baseball culture in Japan

Cody Malloy taking in a game at the Kyocera Dome Osaka in June, 2023.

In June, one of my bucket list travel destinations finally came to fruition: I had the incredible privilege of visiting Japan, the Land of the Rising Sun. I have seen a lot of North America, and I have done Europe twice (the first time for a hockey trip in high school and the second time was a solo six-and-a-half week backpacking excursion), but Asia is a whole new world.

In Japan, the sushi tastes different, their transit makes our transit in North America look archaic (putting it lightly), and the people are some of the most polite you will ever meet. Whether I was wandering through the streets of Osaka, Kyoto, Hiroshima, or Tokyo (my new favourite city in the world) in the scorching June sun, I saw a ton of baseball hats on the heads of locals. Want to guess which logos I saw?

New York Yankees

Seattle Mariners

Los Angeles Dodgers

Los Angeles Angels

San Diego Padres

What do they have in common? Legendary Japanese players play or played for those teams.

A poster promoting the majors near the Shibuya Crossing in Tokyo

The game in Japan is almost like a religion. They treat their superstars like gods. I remember seeing posters promoting big-league ball with Japanese (and non-Japanese) players near the Shibuya Crossing in Tokyo (the busiest intersection in the world). I saw Shohei Ohtani on posters outside of banks advertising whatever financial product or service it was (I unfortunately cannot read Japanese). As a top-tier international player, his marketability is arguably unlike any player the game has ever seen. What makes Japanese baseball culture so different?

For a long time, I have been craving to watch baseball in Japan. I kept thinking to myself while watching the 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC) games on TV from the Tokyo Dome in March, “I can’t wait to check this out in person.” I was incredibly fortunate to see three games while I was in Japan:

_ Yokohama DeNA BayStars at Orix Buffaloes in Osaka (I went all the way to Japan to watch Trevor Bauer strike out Marwin Gonzalez).

_ Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks at Tokyo Yakult Swallows

_ Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles at Yomiuri Giants (at the legendary Tokyo Dome)

As someone who has been very fortunate to attend and/or work countless games in my life, I can tell you that attending a regular season major-league game does not come close to the atmosphere at a Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) game in Japan. The fans are passionate, knowledgeable, and do not miss a beat. They pay attention with laser focus, with little distraction from their phones. They chant the entire time, and everyone knows the words off by heart. Going to an NPB game is like going to a party, or a soccer game in Europe (which I also have been fortunate enough to experience).

Ohtani will take the league as a whole to new heights on a contending team.

So, what do my personal travel observations have to do with this article?

Witnessing baseball culture in Japan recently made me realize something: Shohei Ohtani’s new team (presumptively, since most insiders believe he will not return to the Los Angeles Angels) is about to tap into a market of some 125 million Japanese people that see the game in a whole different way.

Ohtani after striking out Mike Trout to win the 2023 WBC in March, 2023 (The Associated Press)

Remember the WBC championship game in March when Japan beat Team USA?

Yes, the one where Ohtani struck out Angels teammate Mike Trout to win it all. That game started at 8 a.m. on a Wednesday morning in Japan. Want to know something surreal? The game was on in 42.4% of Japanese households. The most watched WBC game in history was the 2023 quarter-final game between Japan and Italy (7 p.m. local time in Tokyo), which was viewed by an astonishing 48.7% of the Japanese population. Yes, the games I speak of were during a tournament that “means nothing,” according to some critics of the WBC.

Want to know something even more surreal?

The 2010 Vancouver Olympics gold medal Canada-USA hockey game was watched on average by 49.8% of Canadians (fun fact: it is still the most watched TV broadcast in Canadian history).

Yes, Japan’s love for baseball is comparable to Canada’s love for hockey.

Who is Japan’s favourite (current) baseball player?

Shohei Ohtani. Yes, the guy who had the best selling major-league jersey in 2023 – the first Japanese player to ever top that list.

Fans in Japan greet Ohtani when the arrives lands the airport at season’s end. (Mainichi/Naoki Watanabe)

It then makes sense that Ohtani is the most followed player on Instagram, with six million followers (Mike Trout is second, with 2.2 million followers). For further reference, the New York Yankees have the largest Instagram following out of any big-league team, with 3.3 million followers.

Just to be clear, you read that right – Ohtani has more Instagram followers than the second-most followed big leaguer and most-followed team combined. The global brand exposure his next team will get is undoubtedly insane.

Think about the impact Ohtani will have on his next team, outside of his stellar on-field performance. Japanese baseball fans travelled to Los Angeles in waves to see Ohtani play. Even a luxury mall near Angel Stadium saw an uptick in revenue, thanks to an influx of Japanese baseball fans. Funai, a Japanese electronics company, previously sponsored the Angels’ press conference backdrops. Japanese media outlet NHK broadcast every Angels game (until he was out for the last few weeks of the 2023 season due to injury), and even had a camera fixed on him at all times. The extra TV revenue is most definitely worth big dollars for the league (I unfortunately could not find specific figures).

To the best of my research, all revenue derived from international TV deals and merchandise goes to the league – i.e. any revenue from Japanese TV deals to cover Angels games, as well as Angels merchandise sold in Japan, was not directly attributed to the Angels.

All points mentioned above, consider this: Ohtani has never played in a single postseason game. Imagine the eyeballs Ohtani will attract, whether it be within North America or in Japan (or elsewhere), should Ohtani actually play in a World Series game?

Ohtani in postseason play will be unlike anything we have ever seen before. I can assure you the league cannot wait for Ohtani to get exposure in October, its highest revenue generating month of the year. Ohtani’s new team will benefit from boosted on-field performance and new fans, and MLB cannot wait to rake in the dollars from added viewers during the postseason.

So, big-league baseball you want to grow the game globally? It is about to happen, trust me.

In the words of Beetlejuice (with a slight spin): it’s “Shotime”.