Hundreds of reporters congregated outside Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles this week to greet Shohei Ohtani and ask how the Japanese superstar made the choice to suit up in Dodger blue.
Donning his crisp No 17 uniform for the first time, Ohtani said that during his meeting with the team’s owners, “they said when they look back at the last 10 years, they made the playoffs every year and even won one World Series, but they considered that a failure”, he said. “When I heard that, I knew they were all about winning.”
Enormous ambition has powered Ohtani and the Dodgers into the record books with the 10-year, $700mn playing contract announced last week. The deal trumps other record player signings, including the 10-year, $450mn extension for NFL quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Cristiano Ronaldo’s two-year agreement to join Saudi Arabian soccer team Al Nassr FC at more than $200mn per year.