Angels News: How Much Revenue Shohei Ohtani Generates for the Halos
It's almost impossible to put a number on Shohei Ohtani's value to the Angels. In the five years he's been there, Ohtani has become one of, if not, the face of baseball, establishing himself as the greatest two-way player in MLB history.
His impact is felt on the field, off the field and in all the merchandise and ticket sales for the team, bringing in millions of dollars in revenue every year.
While no one knows the exact number regarding what Ohtani brings to the club, ESPN's Alden Gonzalez was able to provide us with a ballpark estimation.
"The exact figure is not known - and the Angels won’t provide one -- but Ohtani is said to annually generate somewhere in the low tens of millions of dollars in additional revenue for the team, a major reason he hasn’t been traded in the lead-up to his free agency."
Gonzalez explains that the Angels had seven Ohtani-related promotions last season, and in the five big ones, the team averaged 41,000 fans per game. In the other 76 home games, the average was less than 30,000 fans in the stands.
Moreover, Ohtani brings an entire country's fanbase with him from Japan. Gonzalez pointed out how many people he's truly bringing to the Angels' stadium, city and fanbase.
"People fly from Japan to watch his games, bringing additional traffic to local restaurants and hotels and, in Anaheim’s case, theme parks. Upward of about 50 Japanese media members are credentialed to cover him on a full-time basis, promoting the Angels’ brand to a nation of 125 million people."
So when agents predict Ohtani may get upwards of a $500 million contract next offseason, it may not be as crazy as it sounds. Not only is Ohtani giving you a top-of-the-rotation ace and a top-of-the-lineup bat, he's also generating you tens of millions of dollars in revenue.
When you think about everything he brings to the team, it makes a lot of sense why the Angels are reluctant to trade him. But, at the same time, they better be ready for the all-out bidding war that's set to take place next offseason.
