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Shohei Ohtani signed for what was a record $700 million deal. The $70 million AAV he agreed to is still the American sports record. No one has a higher salary than he does, but most of it is deferred.
That makes it a little complicated, so Ohtani's yearly income is not $70 million. His annual income comes from a smaller Dodgers salary, endorsements and other sources.
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Despite the fact that since he signed, Juan Soto landed a $765 million deal without the major deferrals that Ohtani has, the player and his agent have no regrets.
Nez Balelo, Ohtani's agent who negotiated the massive contract with the Dodgers, discussed it in an interview with the Los Angeles Times on Thursday.
“Not at all. We wouldn’t do anything different," Balelo said. "He won a championship. He went to the right team. Why would we do anything different? No regrets. Nothing.”
Even with all that in mind, Ohtani has around 20 endorsements. Balelo says he could have a whole lot more.
"It’s not like I’m out there pounding the pavement and soliciting companies," Balelo said. "After 2021 and 2022, we could have really gone crazy. That’s not who he is. He doesn’t want that."
So while Ohtani could make $70 million plus a ton of endorsements yearly, he's not. The former Los Angeles Angels star isn't interested solely in money, though his talent demanded to be paid like no other player in history.
Shohei Ohtani's agent says he wouldn't change anything about coming to MLB
In 2017, the Los Angeles Angels signed Shohei Ohtani. They tried to pair him with Mike Trout, but those two couldn't overcome LA's issues and get them to the playoffs.
Ohtani's playoff debut was in 2024 against the San Diego Padres, but he and his agent wouldn't change a thing about their journey to the MLB.
"If we had to do it all over again today, we would have done it exactly the same way,” Nez Balelo told the Los Angeles Times. “We would have chosen the Angels back in the day. It was the right place, with the group and Mike (Scioscia) and the whole team over there. They gave him an opportunity. They stuck with him. He had a tough spring. It was the right home for him at the time.”
Now, Balelo maintains that the Dodgers, who won the World Series, are the right place for the Japanese slugger.
