Major League Baseball

Why Ben Verlander respects Angels' decision to keep Shohei Ohtani, make a playoff push

Updated Jul. 28, 2023 1:42 p.m. ET

The Los Angeles Angels are going for it.

They are all-in. Shohei Ohtani is staying. There will be no unprecedented blockbuster trade of the best player in baseball history.

Not only that, but soon after the Angels leaked to the media that they will keep Ohtani and push for the playoffs, they added players via a trade with the Chicago White Sox to fill two big holes in their roster. The Angels brought in a starting pitcher and a bullpen arm in Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo López respectively, and they needed both desperately. Giolito, the headliner of this trade, now steps in as the No. 2 starter in the Angels rotation behind Ohtani.

The additions came with a cost — the Angels sent promising young catcher Edgar Quero and solid left-handed pitcher Ky Bush, their No. 2 and No. 3 prospects, to Chicago. This was a big haul for the White Sox. Quero, in particular, was a big piece to move, a switch-hitting catcher with some power who is holding his own in Double-A.

But from where I stand, it's a worthwhile cost from the Angels' perspective. They appear to have their catcher of the future in current top prospect Logan O'Hoppe, who is unfortunately hurt after a promising start for the big-league club. But I hear there's a good chance he comes back before the end of the season, and regardless, he is clearly a big part of the Angels' future. That makes it easier to stomach flipping Quero to go for it now.

I did a lot of thinking about this Wednesday night after the news of the trade broke. It's easy for us armchair general managers to say, ‘Well, just trade him! What are you doing? You should have traded Shohei; your playoff odds are still slim!’

All that is true. Even after the Angels' recent hot stretch, they remain three games back of a wild-card spot. Fangraphs pegs their playoff chances at 23%.

But I respect that the Angels are going for it and doing everything that they can to keep the greatest player we have ever seen. If I'm Angels owner Arte Moreno, I have to wake up and understand that I have the best player, and I'm going to scratch and crawl like hell to try and keep him when all is said and done.

Think of it this way. If you are handed the keys to the greatest car of all time, the nicest car that's ever existed, are you going to trade that car in early to try and get a few cars that might live up to the standard someday? No; you have to hold on to it for as long as you possibly can and hope and pray that you can ultimately keep on to it forever. That's probably what any team is going do if they have Shohei Ohtani.

[Shohei Ohtani throws first MLB shutout, homers twice in doubleheader]

For everyone saying the Angels should trade him and try to help their future, I do get it. I really do. But you have the greatest player ever. When we look back at Babe Ruth, he is remembered as a New York Yankee. He's not remembered as a member of the Boston Red Sox who traded him to the Yankees and suffered through an 86-year drought.

We are not talking about this normal impact player who is a potential trade candidate, so we should not be talking about a normal package they will get in return. Because as many — including my colleague Ken Rosenthal — have said, if the Angels were going to trade Ohtani, they should have done it last year when they could have gotten a better return for him with a season and a half of team control at stake. They didn't do that, so why not go for it?

I respect it. I get it. I understand it. The Angels have the greatest player of all time, and they now have two months to try and make the playoffs, and then hope and pray that he re-signs with them. They're doing that.

Why the Los Angeles Angels going for it with Shohei Ohtani is the RIGHT move

They could be even getting more help soon, too. Mike Trout is expected to be back in August. Zach Neto is healthy. O'Hoppe will hopefully be back before too much longer. Brandon Drury is about to head out on a rehab assignment and should be back soon.

I am not Arte Moreno, nor am I Angels general manager Perry Minasian. But what I do know is this — Moreno and Minasian currently have the most outstanding player we have ever seen on their team. If they were to trade Ohtani, they would not get a fair return for what Ohtani is actually worth because another team would only be trading for two-plus months for him.

There is no guarantee that type of return would transform their organization for the next decade, which the Angels should have been and by all accounts were looking for in exchange for Ohtani. Instead, they are within reach of a wildcard spot with Ohtani still in the fold, so they are going for it, and I respect that wholeheartedly.

Sure, there is a very real chance that this all comes crashing down and it works out miserably. But there is a slim chance that it works.

And if it fails? Hey, at least the Angels tried.

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