I will preface this by saying I love Ohtani. Watching him play has been one of the greatest pleasures of my baseball life. We are all incredibly lucky to be able to watch him play. Even just saying we’re incredibly lucky feels like an understatement. And I want Ohtani back with the team.

But what are we looking at in terms of his contract? $60 million a year? More? $50 million? And for how long? 10 years? Most players start to decline when they get into their 30s, and Ohtani will be 30 next year. Will he be able to pitch and hit at this high of a level for more than say, 4 more years? And let’s say his pitching declines, he isn’t worth $60 million a year as a hitter or pitcher alone, especially if that either of those delfines while he’s only doing one. Maybe playing at his current level for 4-5 more years would justify the money he makes even with a sharp decline for that back half of the contract?

All that being said, Ohtani is the unicorn. The only player that can do what he does. So I guess why not defy age in addition to defying what we all thought players were capable of?

What do you all think? This is just a thought I had an am welcome to hearing some thoughts that challenge my own.