Who does not love a power-packed duo? In the world of MLB, the one duo that undoubtedly stands ahead of the others is Troutani. While Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani have been teammates for years, maybe 2024 is when the two will finally be seen in different uniforms. Taking into consideration another parallel, could it be possible that the two remain with the Los Angeles Angels?

There have been instances where Trout played the part of a great salesman trying to convince baseball’s unicorn to stay in Anaheim. However, now that Shotime has hit free agency, all but the Angels are among the top competitors. For Ohtani, there is a lot to factor in before he chooses his team. His future goal, his desire to play in the playoffs, the awards he aims to get or his values, all play a part in his decision-making.

What Are the Odds of Top Teams Landing Shohei Ohtani?

Considering that Shohei Ohtani can’t pitch for the next year, the teams who are looking for aces, drop off. That leaves 4 top teams that are mutually interested in a potential collaboration. The San Francisco Giants, Texas Rangers, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Toronto Blue Jays are primary suitors. Though the odds board has been topped with the Blue Crew, the others are not too far behind.

As per foxsports.com, two teams have climbed up significantly. After having the sixth-best odds, +900, the Rangers now have the third-best odds (+650) to sign Ohtani. The Blue Jays, who were previously tied for 11th place (+2000), now have the fourth-best odds (+700).  The Chicago Cubs, who had the second-best odds with a +350, as per the latest update might not be too optimistic. Also, San Francisco is at a +1100.

 

That said, where do the Angles stand? It might be noted that between the superstars, Los Angeles is capable of hosting only one of the two between Trout and Ohtani. Both Trout and his team have made it more than clear that the slugger is not interested in parting ways.

Additionally, this offseason, the Angels are still a contender to re-sign the Japanese phenom. Additionally, several MLB folks believe there’s a good chance he goes back to the Halos.

But it could be a difficult decision for the man to make. He made it evident that “it sucks to lose,” but one can’t rule out the benefit of ‘familiarity’ with the Angles which he can use to his advantage. Only Shotime can determine if the iconic Troutani duo will ever be seen again.

Could the Suitors Have Made a Mistake?

Trout knows the mantra that will get the Japanese marvel to stay on with the Halos – Win 𝑏𝑎𝑏𝑦, just win! As per the latest turn of events, that mantra might be redundant. Just look at how Dave Roberts jeopardized the Dodgers’ chances of having Ohtani onboard. There’s conjecture that the 2X unanimous MVP, who loves his privacy obstinately, could have felt a trickle of mistrust after an unexpected announcement.

Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes was surprised that Dave Roberts opened up to the media about their meeting with Shohei Ohtani, per @BNightengale

Jeff Passan recently reported that Shohei did not want his meetings made public pic.twitter.com/rmd3JBDSpz

— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) December 5, 2023

At the winter meetings on Tuesday, manager Dave Roberts disclosed that Shohei Ohtani had a meeting with the Los Angeles Dodgers. This happened a few days prior at Dodger Stadium. Ohtani, according to Roberts, has a “very good poker face,” which prevented the manager from deducing anything from the meeting that lasted two- to three hours. When the media poked, Roberts hesitated before explaining further and revealing some information.

Eventually, he said, “Yeah, we met with him. I don’t want to – I’d like to be honest and so we met with Shohei and we talked and I think it went well. I think it went well. But at the end of the day, he’s his own man and he’s going to do what’s best for himself, where he feels most comfortable“. With that, the Dodgers did one thing that could induce mistrust in the two-way phenom.

Nez Balelo Disapproves 

While Ohtani wanted his meetings to be private, this fiasco might give him second thoughts. Before all the blame falls on the Dodgers, it is key to remember that they were not the only ones to reveal their discussions with the Japanese. The Giants and the Blue Jays too shared that they had met with the premium player.

Giants making progress with Shohei Ohtani? IG follow for Logan Webb comes after that (apparent!) visit to S.F. https://t.co/wRbHhJQA5m via @sfchronicle

— Susan Slusser (@susanslusser) December 5, 2023

 

According to Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle, Shohei Ohtani may have visited with San Fran last weekend. Also, Blue Jays officials are believed to have met with Ohtani on Monday at the club’s Spring Training complex in Dunedin, Fla., according to Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic. With that comes a raging scenario, fasten your seatbelts!

Ohtani’s agent, Nez Balelo, has a reputation for being private. As a result, he demands unquestionable silence from organizations too, especially about his top client. Further, The Athletic even highlighted that if Balelo could prove that any information about this was to be leaked by franchises, it would call for a penalty. Now, it’s worth considering, have the Dodgers, Giants, and the Blue Jays dug their own graves?

Everything Circles Back to Bringing ‘Troutani’ Back

Every action comes with one or a series of consequences. In the iconic case of this generational player’s free agency, some suitors were involved in acts of self-sabotage. Could not being able to maintain privacy be a red flag? Could it be the ultimate deal breaker? The next few days are crucial and every move the suitors make will affect Ohtani’s choice of picking them for the coming years.

If the Japanese star goes back to Anaheim, the power-packed ‘Troutani’ will be back. Managing the two together in their healthy forms would be a financial task for the Halos to figure out. The possibilities are overwhelmingly many. However, only time will provide the best answers.