Alex Rodriguez, 48, the 696-homer major league slugger with a history of banned substances, made the Los Angeles Angels a fiery offer. In short, he wants them to uproot and start over.
“I think the Angels will win the World Series in five years if they do this,” Rodriguez said on a podcast hosted by Ben Verlander and Alex Curry, the younger brother of Justin Verlander.
Specifically, Rodriguez said, “First you trade Ohtani, then you trade Trout. And you bring in a half-dozen guys, you load up on first-rounders, and the next thing you do is you bring in a guy like Theo Epstein and give him ownership and let him run the store.”메이저사이트
The Angels have been in postseason contention all season, but a late-season slump in the first half of the season has put them in a hole. It’s possible they’ll miss the postseason. Angels owner Arte Moreno denied until recently that he would trade Ohtani. The Angels front office isn’t likely to change its mind anytime soon. The Angels front office won’t change their minds easily, either, because they can’t ignore Ohtani’s marketing impact beyond the rebuild.
But Rodriguez said, “I see this as a serious situation. I think we need to take bold action.” Bleacher Report also reported Rodriguez’s comments, saying, “Trading Ohtani was always a remote possibility, but with the Angels potentially bringing back a $600 million player, it would be an earth-shattering move to trade the franchise’s biggest asset in one fell swoop. If they can’t re-sign Ohtani, it’s in the Angels’ best interest to go into a full rebuild, acquire elite prospects and look to the future after a decade of obscurity.”
Rodriguez’s story has a twist. Major League Baseball doesn’t allow first-round picks to be traded. But it’s also one of the strongest rebuilding moves the Angels can make. You can hear a lot of teams talking about sending out free agents one by one, rather than all at once. Even though trades have been on the decline lately due to injuries, there’s still no clear-cut win-win here.
Major League Baseball is in the midst of the All-Star break. The trade deadline is 20 days away. In any case, it’s Moreno’s call.