LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Shohei Ohtani’s chances of getting dealt by the Angels before the Aug. 1 MLB trade deadline took another hit on Sunday when the two-way sensation slugged his major league-leading 36th home run in Anaheim.
Ohtani’s first inning bullet over the center field fence came in the Angels’ 7-5 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates and improved the Halos to 51-49 on the season, eight games back of the Texas Rangers in the AL West.
Team owner Arte Moreno has signaled that he would only part with Ohtani if the team had no chance of making the playoffs for the first time since 2014, which is not the case at the moment.
Ohtani has never competed in the playoffs since coming to Southern California from Japan in 2018, and the team’s chances of playing on the October stage are boosted this year by the expanded playoff format, which will see 12 teams go through.
The loss of 11-time All-Star Mike Trout for up to eight weeks following wrist surgery makes the task more of a challenge, but Ohtani has said he is determined.
If the Angels elect to keep Ohtani this season, it is still likely to be his last in Anaheim.
The 29-year-old will be a free agent at the end of the season and it remains to be seen whether the Angels will offer the possible $500 million long-term contract he could command from teams in bigger markets.
After a solid 6-3 homestand, the Angels now go on the road and will kick off a three-game series against the Tigers in Detroit on Tuesday.
(Reporting by Rory Carroll in Los Angeles; Editing by Sonali Paul)
