MLB Rumors: Phillies Yamamoto problem, Why Giants lost Ohtani, Yankees backup

MLB Rumors: Why did the San Francisco Giants lose out on Shohei Ohtani?

The San Francisco Giants were among the finalists for Shohei Ohtani, but why did they fail to land him? Even worse for the Giants, Ohtani signed a decade-long contract with their NL West rivals, the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Giants offered Ohtani the same contract, per ESPN, as did the Blue Jays. However, it was Ohtani who chose to play with the Dodgers in part because of their commitment to winning over the last decade, and their acknowledgement of failure in the past 10 years. Despite winning a World Series in a shortened season, the Dodgers do not consider the past decade a success story. That is why they were willing to dish out $700 million to Ohtani, and why they are still spending now.

The Giants had a geographical advantage over the Blue Jays, yet weren't considered in the same light. Some around baseball believe the Giants have a 'San Francisco problem', as Buster Posey noted this past week:

"Something I think is noteworthy, something that unfortunately keeps popping up from players and even the players’ wives, is there’s a bit of an uneasiness with the city itself, as far as the state of the city, with crime, with drugs. Whether that’s all completely fair or not, perception is reality. It’s a frustrating cycle, I think, and not just with baseball. Baseball is secondary to life and the important things in life. But as far as a free-agent pursuit goes, I have seen that it does affect things," Posey said.

Now I personally love the city of San Francisco, and have enjoyed my trips there, but if this is the prevailing thought from prominent baseball players then it should be a concern for the Giants. Did it cost them Ohtani? Well, that seems unlikely given the Dodgers have been courting him for over a decade. Still, it's something to keep an eye on.