Shohei Ohtani rumors: Are Angels making a big mistake?

The Los Angeles Angels are getting calls on Shohei Ohtani ahead of the MLB trade deadline.

Despite having Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout in their organization, the Los Angeles Angels are going to need more than a prayer or two to make it into the expanded AL postseason in October.

The Angels have two of the most gifted players of their generation on their team, yet they cannot even remotely sniff the playoffs. Perennial AL MVP candidate Mike Trout might be breaking down physically. While Ohtani is doing things nobody has ever seen on a baseball diamond, this team is 39-54, 11.5 games out of the last AL Wild Card spot and 22.5 games back of the Houston Astros…

Jon Morosi of the MLB Network reported on Saturday afternoon, “MLB teams are calling [the] Angels to express trade interest in Shohei Ohtani, but the Angels are indicating they have no plans to move the superstar before the Aug. 2 trade deadline.”

Ohtani is coming off one of his worst starts of the season, one where he allowed six earned runs over 6.1 innings in an 8-1 defeat vs. the Atlanta Braves on Friday night. The reigning AL MVP is the ultimate two-way player, but nothing leads us to believe the Angels will get this right. Angels general manager Perry Minasian used to work for the Braves, but he is not fielding any trade calls.

Should the Angels seriously consider moving one of their best players before the trade deadline?

Shohei Ohtani trade rumors: Should the Los Angeles Angels even listen to offers?

If the Angels trade Ohtani, their fans should riot. The 28-year-old Japanese phenom is arbitration eligible in 2023 and will not be hitting unrestricted free agency until 2024. Though he is not on a long-term contract, the Angels cannot possibly trade a generational talent like this after only 4.5 years worth of service for them. If they do, they must end up with the league’s best farm system.

Then again, when have the Angels been truly elite at developing players? All the top prospects from another organization are just bites at the apple, hoping you get someone like, I don’t know, the next Trout or Ohtani! The Angels may have drafted Trout, but they signed Ohtani as a free agent. They may be the No. 2 team in town, but playing in Los Angeles should still carry weight.

Though Minasian has a job to do, the amount of backlash he would receive from trading Ohtani would be borderline unfathomable. He does have to figure out why his team is utterly putrid fast, but you don’t want to be known as the guy who traded Ohtani to a contender in the midst of his prime. The only way you do is with a Godfather offer chock full of 100-percenter MLB prospects.

Ultimately, the Angels cannot be trusted to earn the benefit of the doubt in a seismic trade of this magnitude. Their best course of action is for Minasian to field a far better team next season with the hopes Ohtani wants to stick around on another contract. He may walk in two years, but the Angels have to give themselves one more chance at doing something before next July approaches.

It would be absolutely earth-shattering if the Angels actually traded Ohtani in the next two weeks.