A letter of encouragement to Ohtani
Dear Shohei:
I hope you are enjoying the weekend in Boston. The weather has been great, which is almost usually the case in April. We’re the Anaheim of the East Coast.
The Angels have been taking a bus over to Fenway Park. But if you ever need to take the MBTA, know that it’s always on time and completely reliable. Never a problem there.
This letter is a friendly reminder that when you become a free agent after the season, Boston would be a great spot to call home.
Just imagine, Shohei Ohtani playing at Fenway Park. The best player at the best ballpark.
The Red Sox tried to recruit you out of high school in 2012 and again in 2017 when you became a free agent for the first time.
Not sure if you saw it or not, but the Sox sent your agent a detailed plan for how they planned to develop you as a pitcher and hitter and compared you to Babe Ruth, who was a two-way player for the Sox before he was traded to the Yankees.
The Yankees didn’t let Babe keep pitching, by the way. Just something to keep in mind.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora said the other day that he kept the email about how the team planned to use you. That’s how excited he was at the thought of managing a great two-way player.
Maybe that could finally happen. Cora certainly was impressed with your performance in the championship game of the World Baseball Classic, when you reached base twice and pitched the final inning to get the save against the United States.
“With all due respect to all the athletes in the world, he has to be the best athlete,” Cora said. “What he’s doing, what he did, is amazing. I’m still in awe.”
You would find a welcoming environment in Boston. The Sox have three Japanese staffers: strength and conditioning coach Kiyoshi Momose, athletic trainer Masai Takahashi, and massage therapist Shinichiro Uchikubo.
The franchise also has a long history with Japanese players. Tomo Ohka was the first back in 1999. In the years since, Daisuke Matsuzaka, Hideo Nomo, Hideki Okajima, Takashi Saito, Hirokazu Sawamura, Junichi Tazawa, and Koji Uehara all have been Red Sox.
So was Dave Roberts, who was born in Japan and helped the Red Sox win the 2004 World Series with his famous steal of second base in the American League Championship Series against the Yankees.
Matsuzaka and Okajima were on the 2007 championship team. The 2013 team had Tazawa and Uehara. They’re in Boston this weekend for a reunion of that team. You should ask them about their experience in Boston. Koji became a folk hero.
The latest Japanese star to join the Sox is left fielder Masataka Yoshida, your WBC teammate. He said the other day how special it was to win that championship with you.
So let’s get down to business. The Sox haven’t won it all since 2018. It has been an agonizing drought for Boston sports fans. There are 4-year-old children who have not been alive for a championship season.
Think of those poor kids, Shohei. They need a parade.
You can help them smile again. Don’t tell anybody, but John Henry and Tom Werner hatched a secret plan in 2019 to get you to Boston.
They hired Chaim Bloom as chief baseball officer and had him get rid of all the good, high-priced players so the Sox would have plenty of money to sign you after this season.
The plan has worked to perfection. Maybe a little too well, actually. The Sox are roughly $100 million under the luxury tax threshold for 2024. Take as much of that as you want, you earned it.
Heck, with even just $50 million you could probably afford a place in the Seaport.
The fans are mad at Bloom now, but they’ll love him when you start on Opening Day next season.
So please come to Boston. I can assure you Sox fans are perpetually cheerful and the reporters always look for a positive spin. One of my colleagues is known as Dan “Bright Side” Shaughnessy.
Good luck the rest of the season and let me know if you need a lift from the airport for the press conference. It’ll be a quick ride, there’s never any traffic.