Shohei Ohtani follows back SF Giants ace Logan Webb on Instagram
Oh yeah, it's that time of year again. The SF Giants' pursuit of longtime Angels pitcher/designated hitter Shohei Ohtani (#1-ranked free agent) just got a little more promising when Ohtani followed back Logan Webb on Instagram.
It's a significant move, since Ohtani follows a mere 177 people on the social media app. One of them is Webb, who told Susan Slusser of The San Francisco Chronicle last week that he wanted to take to the 'Gram to recruit the Giants' top free agent target.
"I think all 30 teams can imagine what it’d be like to have that guy,” Webb said. “I’ve said it before, he’s the best player on the planet, one of the best players of all time. I have strong feelings: I would love for him to come and play in San Francisco. I’ve tried to follow him on Instagram, and he didn’t follow me back so I didn’t get very far there."
Now Webb has the chance to share his strong feelings with Ohtani via direct messages. No telling whether he has a collection of recruitment memes ready for Ohtani, or whether Ohtani has started viewing Webb's Instagram Stories yet.
Social media is the new place for reading the tea leaves about athletes' innermost feelings. Deebo Samuel unfollowed the 49ers amid uncertainty about his contract last year, scrubbing all references to the team. Damian Lillard telegraphed his trade request to the Miami Heat, which didn't work for him, by dancing to Miami-themed music on Instagram Live.
It doesn't necessarily mean that Ohtani will sign with the Giants, but it's certainly a better sign than him not following Webb. It would be understandable if Ohtani merely wanted a channel to ask Webb questions, or even if he wanted to look at photos of Webb's extremely photogenic dog, Oakley.
One note of caution before SF Giants fans start pre-ordering their Ohtani jerseys: Aaron Judge follows Logan Webb on Instagram, too.
