In December 2023, the Toronto Blue Jays came closer than anyone else to signing Shohei Ohtani. The organization had designed an all-out offensive from the president to the last member of staff to seduce the Japanese star. The organization had everything ready to welcome him with jerseys, personalized lockers and even a jacket for his dog in the hope that he would be the star of the team and feel at home.
However, despite the efforts, Shoehi Ohtani decided to take another path and signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers for $700 million to break all illusions in Toronto and open an emotional scar in the organization and fans. From that moment on, his name has been linked to the Blue Jays in many ways, but now, almost two years later, that past returns to take over a new narrative like the 2025 World Series.
Ohtani vs Blue Jays: the story of a decision that marked both
The story of Shohei Ohtani and the Toronto Blue Jays is more than just a failed signing, it was one of the most intense and secretive negotiations in recent MLB history, as during the 2023 winter meetings, while the world was speculating, the organization was in Florida preparing a pitch to convince the Japanese player to wear blue.
The star toured the training center and took the team’s cap, something that manager Jon Schneider jokingly recalled months later: “Tell him to give us back the cap”. But without a doubt, what he did take away was the illusion of the entire franchise with his decision to go to the Dodgers, changing the course of both teams.
World Series 2025: Ohtani and Toronto’s paths cross once again
Now Toronto seems to have been reborn from that disappointment with a historic 2025 season that led them to be crowned in the American League with players such as Vladimir Guerrero Jr, Bo Bichette and George Springer, who have led the team to its first World Series since 1993.
However, in front of them is one of the most dominant teams in MLB, the Los Angeles Dodgers, who have Shohei Ohtani, who despite not having the best postseason seems to have regained his level because in the last game of the National League Championship Series he lit up with three home runs and the matchup gets spicy because he has consolidated in California as a star and crosses against the franchise that was left waiting for him and empty-handed.
The 2025 World Series begins on Friday, October 24 at Rogers Centre, home of Toronto at 8:00 p.m. (ET) and the Blue Jays fans are expected to put pressure on the Japanese, who could be a figure of the team, but preferred the Dodgers.
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