Superstar Shohei Ohtani is moving to MLB club Los Angeles Dodgers for the biggest contract in baseball history. The Japanese confirmed this on social media on Saturday; according to media reports, the deal will run for ten years and be worth $700 million.
“I have decided to choose the Dodgers as my next team,” Ohtani, whose contract with the Los Angeles Angels is expiring, wrote on Instagram after weeks of speculation about his future. The Chicago Cubs, Toronto Blue Jays, New York Yankees and San Francisco Giants are also said to have been involved in the bidding for the 29-year-old.
Ohtani has taken Major League Baseball by storm since joining the Angels in 2018. His trademark: The Asian has exceptional skills in both pitching and hitting, which have long earned him comparisons with the American baseball icon Babe Ruth.
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“To all fans and everyone involved in the baseball world, I apologize for taking so long to make a decision,” wrote Ohtani: “I promise to always do what is best for the team and to continue to give it my all, to be the best version of myself.” Until the last day of his playing career, he wanted to move forward “not only for the Dodgers, but also for the baseball world.”
Ohtani suffered a torn ligament in his right arm in the summer and had to cut short the season due to injury. Nevertheless, he was named the American League’s Most Valuable Player (“MVP”) – making him the first player to receive this award unanimously twice. The Angels missed the playoffs and therefore played no role in the fight for the World Series.
