Shohei Ohtani is one of the biggest names in baseball and has just been the focus of a world-record sports contract deal after moving cross-town from the Angels to the Dodgers in Los Angeles. Shohei is a real rarity in the sport as a two-way player and now has to live up to the value that his new team has placed on him.
His new team was already one of the favorites to win MLB’s World Series this year and Ohtani’s arrival will only convince the fans that the Dodgers will win the Fall Classic for the first time since 2020. Great things are expected of the Japanese superstar this year and we can’t wait to see how he gets on in the blue and white.
Ohtani’s new contract has obviously swelled his bank account and we will be looking at his estimated net worth, as well as the highlights of his life and career so far. Let’s find out all about “Shotime” and try to predict what will happen this season – and beyond.
Early Life and Education
Shohei Ohtani was born on July 5th, 1994 in Mizusawa, which is now part of the city of Oshu in Iwate Prefecture, Japan. His mother was a badminton player and his father worked in an automobile manufacturing plant and was also an amateur baseball player. He is the youngest of three children, with a sister, Yuka, and a brother, Ryuta, who is an amateur baseball player as well.
Ohtani showed promise very early on after being coached by his father and played baseball from seventh grade onwards. He played the sport at the local Hanamaki Higashi High School and then decided to go pro instead of attending college.
Personal Life
Ohtani is a big enough star in the US. But he is one of Japan’s most celebrated athletes and has been big news ever since his high school days. The Prime Minister of Japan even offered him Japan’s national honor but Ohtani rejected it stating that it was too early for such plaudits.
Ohtani stunned his fans at the end of February 2024, when he announced via his Instagram account that he had gotten married. He is famously private about his personal life and hardly anything is known about his new wife.
Shohei Ohtani’s Net Worth
After playing in Japan, Ohtani signed an MLB rookie deal with the Los Angeles Angels in 2018 that earned him a total salary of $9.7 million. After proving just how good he was, he signed a $5.5 million contract in 2022 before agreeing to a one-year $30 million deal and becoming a free agent at the end of the 2023 season.
Even after suffering an injury, Ohtani still ended up signing a 10-year $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers – the largest contract in sports history. The deal is fully guaranteed but he will earn just $2 million in salary over the next 10 years and then receive the rest in installments from 2034.
Ohtani also brings in around $40-50 million a year from a number of high-level endorsements on both sides of the Pacific. Some of his top partnerships include Hugo Bros, Fanatics, New Balance, and Porsche Japan.
Early Career
Ohtani elected to move to the majors straight from high school and it was expected that he would immediately sign for a Major League Baseball team. But he surprised most pundits by choosing to play for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, the team who picked him in the 2022 NPD Draft.
The reason for Ohtani remaining in Japan was that the Fighters agreed to allow him to play as a pitcher and as a position player. Ironically, the Los Angeles Dodgers – Ohtani’s number one choice in MLB – had refused to let him become a two-way player.
Shohei Ohtani’s MLB Career
After winning the Japan Series, the Pacific League MVP award, and becoming a five-time NPB All-Star, Ohtani eventually made the move to Major League Baseball. He signed with the Los Angeles Angels in 2018, which announced that he would play as a pitcher and a designated hitter.
Over the next few years, Ohtani’s profile grew as he recorded impressive numbers, even though he suffered a series of injuries that restricted his playing time for the Angels. He had already been named American League Rookie of the Year in 2018 but after coming back from injury and COVID, 2021 was his real breakout year.
A new training and dietary regime transformed his game and he ended up winning his first American League MVP award. He was named an All-Star, made the All-MLB First Team, and was the AL Triples Leader. Associated Press also named him as its Athlete of the Year.
Although the Angels never did make the playoffs with Ohtani, he continued to win a number of personal awards – including a second AL MVP in 2023, as well as the AL Home Run Leader, and being named as an All-Star again. He now moves to Dodger Stadium and is expected to inspire his new team to another World Series triumph.
