Jerseys were burned but it was the heart that felt the heat. This was the story of the day when Shohei Ohtani officially announced his historic $700 million deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The cross-state rivals and Ohtani’s previous team Los Angeles Angels were left behind; their fans were livid, but in their hearts, they were sad. However, a recent report indicates that Ohtani, too, never really wanted to leave the Halos.

That’s right, despite him currently loving it in the Blue Crew, Shohei Ohtani wanted to remain an Angel. However, it wasn’t him who decided to terminate the relationship, it was Halos. That is a bizarre development for a team that hasn’t been able to fill the black hole created by Ohtani’s absence. It was a fumble of the century but more than that, it once again showed the current state of the Halos organization. 

New York Post’s John Heyman revealed in his recent article that Ohtani had given the $700 million option to 4 teams. They were – the Dodgers, the San Francisco Giants, the Angels, and the Toronto Blue Jays.  The terms were similar to what he eventually signed up for with the Dodgers (97% of the salary differed). However, interestingly all but one team accepted it – the team that didn’t was the Angels. And now according to Halos’ All-Star Tyler Anderson, that may have surprised Ohtani.

“That’s the word,” Anderson said on Angels declining the offer. “He obviously did so well (in Anaheim), and I feel like if he obviously wants to have a Hall-of-Fame career if you stay with one team, that’s the way to do it.” Later Anderson noted that Ohtani was already putting up numbers in the Angels and didn’t have to leave. In his words, there was obviously “something to” the reports of the Los Angeles Angels declining to sign Ohtani.

That was a big win for the Dodgers. They immediately found a game-changer who is currently the best player in their team. However, it once again highlights the core issue in the Angels’ organization – lack of edge within the management.

Losing Shohei Ohtani highlighted the LA Angels’ core issue 

As of June 19th, the Angels sit at 4th in AL West with a win percentage of just .427. That is the 4th worst record in all of MLB right now. Though fans expected this to happen, one can’t deny that the Halos could’ve avoided this fate. Neither did the team invest in replacing Shohei Ohtani, nor have they improved the squad’s balance. This has been a theme for them for far too long and now with the trade deadline nearing, they’re once again looking to be sellers. 

However, here comes the prime issue – their farm lacks depth. MLB Pipeline ranked their farm system dead last in the league. For a team that has no major stars barring Mike Trout, having a bad farm just exasperates the issue. Do the Angels actually want to win? They do, but, as of now, the team is looking as far away from winning as they’ve been in a decade. While Trout is slowly getting ready to make a comeback, can he alone take them to the next level? That is a big ask from a player who hasn’t completed any whole season in the 2020s. 

As for Shohei Ohtani, his Dodgers team is sprinting towards another postseason. Despite their inconsistencies, the Blue Crew’s star-studded roster has made life much easier for the two-way phenom. That’s something that the Angels never managed to give to Ohtani, which was the biggest tragedy – they had it all, but didn’t know how to manage it.

What’s your take on the LA Angels’ farm lacking depth? Share below.