Shohei Ohtani next team odds: Blue Jays shorten to +100 before markets go off the board
As the baseball world awaits the decision of free agent Shohei Ohtani, who's expected to sign soon, the betting markets have come off the board.
The latest: The Toronto Blue Jays' odds to sign Ohtani shortened to the lowest point (+100) on Friday, December 8 after opening at +3,000 a month earlier. It was still the Los Angeles Dodgers who were the betting favourites to land him at -110 by the time the markets came down late Friday afternoon.
Below are our last Ohtani next team odds as of Dec. 8 at 12:40 p.m. ET.
Ohtani next team odds
MLB oddsas of 12:40 p.m. ET on 12/08/2023.
Ohtani next team odds: Blue Jays among contenders
Friday marked the shortest Toronto’s odds have been since the Ohtani market went live, indicating a growing belief that the club is a serious player for the two-way star’s services.
Most reporters have seemingly pegged this down to a race between the Blue Jays and Dodgers, though other clubs have been linked to the 29-year-old.
Speculation heated up throughout Friday and false rumours had Ohtani heading to Toronto, but as of 11:30 p.m. ET on Dec. 8, the biggest free agent in MLB history remained unsigned.
When he does sign, the price tag is going to be astronomical. That apparently will not be a deterrent for Rogers Communications, the Blue Jays' deep-pocketed owner, which is said to be willing to offer Ohtani a contract "well north of $500 million," according to the Toronto Sun’s Rob Longley.
With few leaks and seemingly little insider information, it has been difficult to get a read on the Ohtani sweepstakes. None of the big newsbreakers have been able to provide much info on his free agency thought process, but Toronto has consistently been linked to the megastar and the interest appears mutual.
The one tidbit of information that did leak, from The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal, legitimized those rumours. According to Rosenthal, Ohtani visited the Blue Jays’ spring training complex in Florida last weekend as part of his meetings with interested clubs.
That reportedly came a day before Toronto GM Ross Atkins was mysteriously absent from a scheduled meeting with reporters at the annual winter meetings. As the saying goes, where there’s smoke, there’s fire.
Here's a look at the Ohtani/Blue Jays line movement:
- Nov. 11: +3,000
- Nov. 22: +2,300
- Nov. 30: +450
- Dec. 1: +250
- Dec. 4: +700
- Dec. 6: +250
- Dec. 7: +115
- Dec. 8: +100
Dodgers betting favourites for Ohtani
Not surprisingly, this has all along felt like the Dodgers’ battle to lose and the odds have consistently reflected that.
Los Angeles is naturally linked to nearly every superstar and the perennial contender has not shied away from paying enormous salaries to improve its club in the past.
We also know for sure that the Dodgers are pursuing him after manager Dave Roberts admitted so earlier in the week. Perhaps baseball's biggest insider, Jeff Passan, has also reported numerous times this offseason that the Dodgers are serious contenders for Ohtani.
They have been the betting favourite to acquire the three-time all-star ever since this market opened.
Whether it’s the Dodgers, Blue Jays or another club — such as the Los Angeles Angels, who have enjoyed the entirety of Ohtani's six-year career — this is who they will be getting:
A two-time unanimous MVP who’s coming off the best offensive season of his career, hitting .300-plus and eclipsing a .400 on-base percentage for the first time. He added 44 home runs — the second 40-plus homer season of his career — and excelled on the mound yet again.
Ohtani, of course, won’t pitch next season but will take a career 3.01 ERA and 11.4 K/9 rate to the mound with him when he returns.
