Los Angeles Angels fans are frustrated. The owner withdrew the sale because he believes that this result is directly related to the transfer of Ohtani Shohei (29).
Arte Moreno, the owner of the Angels, made a statement on the club’s official SNS on the 24th (Korean time).
“During the sale process, it became clear that we still had work to do,” said Moreno. I realized that I was not ready to part with my fans, players and staff.”
In 2003, Moreno bought the Angels from Disney. After operating for about 19 years, he announced his intention to sell the club in August of last year. The Angels possessed major league superstar Mike Trout along with pitching star Ohtani, and the expected sale price was expected to be 2.5 billion dollars (approximately 3 trillion won), the highest ever.
After the club’s intention to sell it was reported, various heavyweights showed interest in acquiring the Angels. Joe Lakob, the owner of the Golden State Warriors, an NBA team, Patrick Soon-Shiong, the owner of the Los Angeles Times, and a number of Japanese investment groups have emerged as candidates. However, the owner of Moreno suddenly withdrew the sale of the club, so there was no change of owner.
Angels fans were frustrated when it was reported that the sale was withdrawn. The reason is that Ohtani’s transfer was certain.
Ohtani will become a free agent (FA) at the end of this season. If he does not sign an extension contract with the Angels, he is free to negotiate with any major league club. Ohtani is a player who symbolizes the major leagues beyond the Angels. 메이저놀이터 He has proven his skills as both a pitcher and a batter, and is the best card to catch both performance and box office success.
However, Ohtani consistently expressed his intention to “want to move to a team that can win.” He made his big league debut as a member of the Angels in 2018, but he never even stepped on the threshold of the postseason.
Some media reported that Ohtani felt frustrated with the Angels’ sluggish performance, suggesting the possibility of a transfer. In fact, there were reports that the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Mets were interested in signing Ohtani.
The Angels needed reform to retain Ohtani. Fans are also well aware of this, so the sale of the club was successful and the new owner wanted a wide investment, but it has now returned to failure. Unless Moreno’s owner continues to open his wallet, further reinforcements will be difficult.
Natsuki Une, a Japanese major league columnist, said, “The owner of Moreno decided to stay, but even if he opened his wallet, there were no big players in the free agent market. It is not easy for the Angels to advance into the postseason. , Texas Rangers have all reorganized their teams. At this rate, there is a very high possibility that the Angels will have no choice but to trade Ohtani in the transfer market, “he explained the possibility of Ohtani’s transfer.
Meanwhile, the Angels completed one of the best players in club history this offseason. Starting pitcher Tyler Anderson, infielders Gio Ursella and Brandon Drury, and outfielder Hunter Renfro were acquired as free agents or traded.
Fans are paying attention to whether the Angels will be able to advance to the postseason after 9 years since the 2014 season, and whether they will succeed in remaining by relieving Ohtani’s sorrow.