L.A Dodgers — Amid the MLB free agency market exploding with multi-million dollar contracts, Shohei Ohtani, the brightest star of the Los Angeles Dodgers, just silenced the baseball world for a few seconds. When asked about rumors that at least three major league teams — including the Cubs, Yankees, and Mets — were pursuing him with “irresistible” offers, Ohtani simply smiled and said: “Money? I don’t need it. The Dodgers are my home, and L.A. is my family.”
When Shohei Ohtani signed a record $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers in December 2023, many assumed he would be the team’s “golden goose.”
“The Dodgers have given me everything,” he said after practice at the stadium. “Since I’ve been here, they’ve treated me not just as a player, but as a son. I owe this city more than any contract.” He’s not just a key player; he’s the soul of the locker room, the guy the team turns to when things go wrong.
Many in the industry called Ohtani’s statement “a rare statement of loyalty” in this MLB era, where $300 million contracts are a daily occurrence.
“I’m not against anyone pursuing that,” Ohtani said. “But for me, to be able to wear a Dodgers jersey every day, to hear the L.A. crowd chant my name — that’s something no team can buy.”
According to ESPN, the Dodgers planned to open early extension talks with Ohtani, not just to “keep a star,” but to send a message: loyalty still exists in modern baseball.
Behind Ohtani’s calm exterior is a quiet love for the L.A. community.
In an era where loyalty is rarer than trophies, Ohtani has just proven that sometimes what makes greatness isn’t the number on a contract, but the heart that beats in sync with the city you love.
And in L.A., they found something rare: Not just a star… but a true L.A.
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