Shohei Ohtani Free Agent Contract Value Revealed

The MLB Trade Deadline is less than a week away and while there haven't been any major deals yet, the rumor mill is as hot as ever. Most of that right now is driven by the potential trade of superstar Juan Soto, but another generational talent is starting to hear his name pop up – Shohei Ohtani.

Shohei Ohtani Trade Rumors

The thinking behind a potential Ohtani trade comes for a few reasons from the Los Angeles Angels' angle. First, he's going to be a free agent following next season and there's no guarantee he will want to re-sign. Second, with Mike Trout's massive contract already on the books, can they justify or even afford to add another contract that will absolutely be equal to or higher in average annual value than Trout's? And lastly, Ohtani's value will never be higher than it is now and could net the Angels a legendary return.

Shohei Ohtani Contract Value

ESPN's Jeff Passan looked at what a potential Ohtani contract could or should look like once the star two-way player hits free agency, and let's just say, the numbers are... staggering, yet kind of justified? Passan predicts Ohtani's value could net out in the $64 million per year range. That's nearly double the highest paid position player and a good $20 million more than the highest paid pitcher.

Ohtani's value comes from the fact that he's not just a once in a generation player, he's a once in the history of baseball player. There has never been someone in the live ball era that has been both one of the league's top hitters and top pitchers, consistently, at the same time. Ohtani is now in his second year of this with zero signs of slowing down.

By comparing Ohtani's numbers to similar players, Passan landed on Max Scherzer and his $43 million annual salary and Matt Olsen and his $21 million salary. From both the mound and batters box, Ohtani's production lines up and it's not like either of those players are having unbelievable seasons.

Due to Ohtani's uniqueness as a player, it's nearly impossible to predict his actual value, but the strategy displayed by Passan is tough to argue with unless you think he will focus on just pitching or just hitting further down the line. Ohtani's box office draw cannot be overstated either. While his on the field impact is clear (4.8 WAR in 2022) as he's favored to win back-to-back MVP awards, even at the high number he could be worth it from a business standpoint for a team that can afford to build a winning team around him.

There's no telling if the Angels will actually deal Ohtani, but it seems they are at the very least considering it as they are in the midst of yet another disappointing season. Either way, it's a complicated decision for Los Angeles and one they have to observe from multiple viewpoints.

David Kaestle is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, David also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username davekaestle. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.