For several years, the Los Angeles Angels had one of the greatest stars in modern baseball in their hands: Shohei Ohtani, but instead of building around him, they let him carry a broken team. Former manager Phil Nevin recently offered a raw insight into that period: Ohtani wanted to win at all costs, but ran into injuries and a lack of direction
Nevin revealed that Ohtani was not bothered by the injuries themselves, but by the constant stagnation they caused. “It wasn’t that the guys didn’t want to play, but he felt like he couldn’t move forward… There was always someone missing,” he explained. That pent-up frustration snowballed.
The Dodgers offered a winning plan
While the Angels were going around in circles, the Dodgers offered Ohtani a clear structure. In 2023, Ohtani shone amid the collapse: 44 home runs, 95 RBIs, and still everything around him crumbled. Trout was injured, Rendon was out of action, and a rotation was in tatters.
Already with the Dodgers, Ohtani unlocked an even more dominant version: 54 home runs, 130 RBIs and an improved stance at the plate. It was not just a change of team, it was a leap of faith towards a forward-thinking franchise. While Anaheim drowned in excuses, in Los Angeles October was in the air.
The Angels squandered a golden moment
Ohtani’s departure was the clearest symptom of a rudderless organization. Instead of capitalizing on his global figure, the Angels let him go without getting anything in return. No trade, no rebuilding plan, no serious commitment to young talent. In 2025, the mistakes are repeated.
Sam Aldegheri was sacrificed in a recent blowout to “preserve arms”, another prospect burned by short-sightedness. Similar cases are repeated with Caden Dana, Victor Mederos and Ryan Johnson. The front office says it is committed to development, but the facts paint a different story.
The departure of Shohei Ohtani was not a betrayal: it was a logical decision in the face of years of indifference. The Angels not only lost a generational player, they lost credibility. And if 2025 is any indication, they have learned nothing.
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