3 reasons why Shohei Ohtani's injury could be a blessing in disguise for the Angels

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The Los Angeles Angels had the worst day a team could have on Wednesday, getting swept in a doubleheader at home against the Reds, and then finding out that both Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani, the two faces of this franchise, are hurt.

Trout was placed on the 10-day IL with his hand still bothering him. It's frustrating considering he just came back, played one game, and then immediately was IL-bound, but it's also not a huge deal because the Angels are all but out of postseason contention and the injury isn't any worse. The Ohtani injury was the big one.

Shohei tore his UCL and will not pitch for the remainder of the season. It's unclear whether he'll need surgery or not or what the degree of the tear is, but this is obviously very bad news for the impending free agent. Ohtani will likely lose a ton of money because of this, but the injury could also make it more likely that Ohtani chooses to remain an Angel.

Injuries are never good and I wish this never happened but if Ohtani's injury is what gets him to remain in Anaheim, then it's easy to call this somewhat of a blessing in disguise.

1) Shohei Ohtani has already gone through this recovery process with the Angels

Comfort is crucial when a pitcher goes through a long recovery process like Ohtani will have to go through. Whether he undergoes surgery or not, he can't pitch for a while and will have to work very hard to get his arm in shape to hold out.

Ohtani could choose to remain an Angel simply because of the comfort he has with the organization. He should feel comfort because he's gone through this before, and came out of it a better pitcher.

Ohtani made 10 starts in the 2018 season before undergoing Tommy John Surgery after tearing his UCL. He didn't pitch in 2019, made just two starts in 2020, but by 2021 was lighting the league by storm with his performance on the bump and at the plate. Ohtani won the MVP award in 2021, was the runner up in 2022 (including a fourth place finish in the Cy Young balloting), and this season is on his way to a second MVP award while leading the league in ERA+ and batting average against.

Ohtani came back from Tommy John once with this Angels organization and came out an even better player. If he stays here, he can do the same things he did last time and potentially come back and be just fine both as a pitcher and a hitter.

If the Angels have Ohtani feeling comfortable, that should make it more likely he re-signs with the club.

2) Other teams that might've gone all out on Ohtani will at least have to question their plans following the diagnosis

All we've heard virtually all season regarding Shohei Ohtani is where he's going to go in free agency. Dodgers? Mets? Yankees? We've really heard it all. These teams that were prepared to throw upwards of $500 million at him might have more cause to pause.

We know Arte Moreno, even with how badly he wants Ohtani back, will have a limit in terms of how much he's willing to spend. In all likelihood he wouldn't outbid a guy like Steve Cohen who seems to stop at nothing to get the players his organization wants. This injury helps open the door to the possibility that other teams might not go all out for Ohtani.

Will a Giants team that couldn't come to terms with signing Carlos Correa after a failed physical spend the amount of money necessary on a pitcher with a torn UCL? We had assumed the Giants would be a key team in the Ohtani sweepstakes, but will they still go to the levels they were going to?

Will a team like the Mets that have had such a disastrous year take the risk that Ohtani might not be the same guy?

The market softening for Ohtani means the Angels have a better shot. I have no idea if they'll actually retain him or even if this injury stops them from pursuing him (it shouldn't). What I do know is Ohtani's dreams of earning upwards of $600 million appear, at least in my opinion, to be down the drain.

3) If Shohei Ohtani stays with the LA Angels, it'll likely be on a deal with less term

The contract Shohei Ohtani was going to sign whether it was with the Angels or not was going to break records. You'd think it'd be at least ten years with the total topping out at $500 million or higher.

Now that Ohtani has this torn UCL, his contract is going to take a hit. The deal he signs (assuming he still wants a long-term deal) will still be substantial, but the price and term took hits on Wednesday night.

Instead of giving a 29-year-old 12 years, the Angels might get away with giving him seven or eight. This means there will be fewer of the disastrous years at the back end of the contract that the Angels have been victimized by.

Ohtani is already limited to the fact that he's a DH that doesn't play the field except when he pitches. Giving a DH a 12-year deal with a questionable pitching arm is probably out of the equation. Giving that DH a seven year deal is not.

Assuming Ohtani bounces back from this and comes back healthy like he did the first time around, there's a good chance that the Angels, if they're lucky enough to retain him, get him on a bargain deal. Not having to pay this guy upwards of $40 or $50 million annually in his late-30's and early-40's is a good thing, even if it stings in 2024.

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