Angels News: Halos Owner Prefers Not to Trade Shohei Ohtani to Keep Fans Happy
The Los Angeles Angels are playing for something (or someone) arguably bigger than their entire franchise. When his career is all said and done, Shohei Ohtani realistically could have a resume that showcases him as the greatest baseball player of all time. A number of analysts already have him in the conversation and that is without one second played in the postseason.
And above all else, we have to tip our hats to the Los Angeles Angels thus far into 2023. Anything can happen from here on out but from what I've seen, the Halos have been competing and they are having fun doing so. Even with Mike Trout going through a rough stretch and also taking some days off, LA has won three straight series with one being against the number one AL West seeded Texas Rangers.
Different guys step up every day and even with prospects like Zach Neto and Sam Bachman being asked to play big roles, they are thriving.
Let's take a walk in Angels owner Arte Moreno's shoes. He prides himself on being able to give the fans in attendance at Angels stadium the best experience possible. Whether that be fair food prices, better parking, he has been able to listen to needs and try to get them done.
Therefore with the trade deadline being about a month and a half away, why would the 76-year-old businessman deal away what many consider the greatest show on Earth? Ohtani just had an electric performance that saw him dominate the Rangers on Thursday with only two runs allowed from the mound and he also connected on a homer himself... nobody else is doing that.
So everybody can say what they like about Moreno but with the way the Angels are playing right now, why would he want to throw everybody off by accepting a deal for his superstar. In an interview with the New York Times, he confirmed he's only thinking about the fans.
"I just don't know how you replace a guy like that," said Moreno. "We want to win, and it's nice to have him in the lineup. For me, it's about the fans."
(Via New York Times)
We'll have to see how the rest of these weeks play out!
