Shohei Ohtani freed as a free agent
Expected to sign a mega-contract exceeding $500 million
As expected, free agent Shohei Ohtani (29) has declined the qualifying offer (QO) from his original team, the Los Angeles Angels.
On the 15th (Korean time), the Associated Press reported that “all seven Major League Baseball (MLB) free agents, including Ohtani, have rejected their QOs.”
A QO is a system where the original team offers a one-year contract to a free agent at the average salary of the top 125 highest-paid players.
This year’s QO amount was US$20.325 million, and Ohtani and others declined it, believing their market value was higher.
The QO system began in 2012, and teams have made 131 offers since then. Among these, players have accepted only 10 times.
This year, the players who received a QO from their original teams include superstar Ohtani, Cody Bellinger (Chicago Cubs), Blake Snell, Josh Hader (both San Diego Padres), Matt Chapman (Toronto Blue Jays), Aaron Nola (Philadelphia Phillies), and Sonny Gray (Minnesota Twins), a total of seven players.
All of them are expected to receive a salary higher than US$20.325 million in the free agent market.
In particular, Ohtani will likely command a record-breaking contract worth more than $500 million.
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