Everything Shohei Ohtani said about joining Dodgers, free agency in press conference

The MLB world watched and wept on Thursday afternoon as Shohei Ohtani was officially introduced as a member of the Los Angeles Dodgers. You can run, you can hide, but the Dodgers will arrive all the same, loaded with the most top-end talent and the most aggressive ownership group in baseball.

You can watch the full live stream of Ohtani's press conference below.

Ohtani's contract with the Dodgers broke world records, as the 29-year-old will receive $700 million over a 10-year span. Even more unique is the structure of Ohtani's contract, which defers $680 million until after his deal with Los Angeles expires in 2034.

Here are the notable quotes from Ohtani's first public availability since he made his consequential decision.

Everything Shohei Ohtani said at Dodgers introductory press conference

The press conference started with our first look at Shohei Ohtani in Dodgers blue. This will take a while to get used to.

Ohtani famously circumvented the press by announcing his decision to join the Dodgers on Instagram. He told reporters he landed on the Dodgers the night before his official announcement.

"I made my decision the night before [my Instagram announcement]. As far as why I chose the Dodgers, there's not really one reason, there's a lot of reasons. I met with a few teams during the whole negotiation process. Honestly, every team I met with [was great], and it was really, really a tough decision, but at the end of the day I had to choose one team and the Dodgers were my choice."

When asked about his recent elbow surgery and whether or not the vagueness around it was an intentional negotiating strategy, Ohtani gave the following response.

"I saw the doctor first and we had to go through a lot of steps and decide what type of surgery I was going to get. At the time of the announcement, we didn't know which way we were going to go. That's why I never said what type of procedure was going to be done... I'm obviously not an expert in the medical field. It was a procedure [that was] completely different from my first time. I don't know what you want to call it. You can probably talk to my doctor about it."

Ohtani was next asked about the structure of his contract, and whether he would have offered similar financial relief to other teams.

"I was aware of the deferral program, or the structure, and usually when there's a big contract in the MLB, I've heard from the past that deferrals are involved. Not all the time, but a lot of the time. So, I was looking into it and doing some calculations and I figured if I can differ as much money as I can, if that's going to help the CBT and help the Dodgers be able to sign better players and make a better team, I felt like that was worth it... As far as other teams, I know free agency is still going on and I don't really want to mess with their plans, and I don't want to say anything wrong, so I don't really want to talk about [it]."

Ohtani mentions the importance of helping the Dodgers avoid the CBT and build a better team. He also spoke about the importance of winning a World Series and why the Dodgers were such an attractive option from a competitive standpoint.

"My contract is 10 years. I'm not sure how long I'll be able to play the game, so I do prioritize winning. I think that's on the top of my list and that will probably never change."

As far as other teams that competed for Ohtani's services, the new Dodger wouldn't budge on potential alternate destinations or which teams were closest aside from LA.

"I don't really want to talk about other teams... As far as the reason why I chose [the Dodgers], there are a lot of reasons, but one thing that really stands out in my head is when I had the meeting the Dodgers, the ownership group said, when they look back at the last 10 years, even though they've made the playoffs every single year and won a World Series ring, they consider that a failure. When i heard that, I knew they were all about winning."

We also — and this is the important bit — learned the name of Ohtani's dog, a mystery that has held the world captive ever since his MVP acceptance speech.

"Decoy."

This is an exciting time for the Dodgers faithful, and a sobering moment of existential dread for every franchise and fanbase that failed to lure the greatest free agent of modern times. Ohtani appears content with his decision, and it's clear the Dodgers' drive to win was the primary motivating factor.

Now, we will see if Ohtani can deliver on the baseball field once next summer rolls around. We all know the answer.