REVEALED: Shohei Ohtani can OPT out of his eyewatering $700million at the LA Dodgers… and here’s how

Shohei Ohtani could opt out of his 10-year, $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers if one of two key managers is no longer in place, a person familiar with the deal told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Ohtani, who will be officially introduced by the Dodgers at a news conference on Thursday, would be allowed to terminate his deal if Mark Walter is no longer the controlling owner or president of baseball operations. Andrew Friedman is no longer with the team, the person said.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the terms had not been disclosed.

Ohtani's deal, announced Monday, stipulates that 97% of the money will be deferred without interest and not paid in full until 2043.

The Athletic first reported Wednesday that Ohtani's deal included a provision that would allow him to opt out at the end of a season if the Dodgers made specific personnel changes.

The deal remains in the form of an agreement between Ohtani's representatives and the team, and no formal contract has yet been submitted to Major League Baseball, the person said.

Ohtani's contract calls for an annual salary of $70 million, with $68 million of each annual salary deferred without interest, payable in equal installments on July 1, 2034 through 43.

Ohtani will be introduced during a press conference at Centerfield Plaza at Dodger Stadium beginning at 3:00 PM PST.

MLB reported Wednesday that Ohtani broke Fanatics' record for the highest jersey sales within the first 48 hours of release, surpassing soccer stars Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Ohtani was out of sight at the stadium Wednesday, where he met teammates including seven-time All-Star outfielder Mookie Betts and reliever Joe Kelly.

“I had a chance to talk to him,” Kelly said, surrounded by children attending an outdoor party with music blaring.

“He was already training, already grinding, getting bigger and stronger. His arm looked good.”

Ohtani's deal includes a full no-trade provision and provides a hotel suite for road trips, a premium luxury suite for home games and a full-time interpreter. Ohtani will donate up to 1% to the Dodgers' charity.

That's thanks to a clause in his massive $700 million, 10-year mega deal he recently signed

Ohtani last spoke to reporters on August 9, two weeks before suffering a pitching injury that required surgery and will keep him off a mound until 2025. He underwent the surgery on September 19, but the nature of the operation was not fully disclosed. Ohtani underwent Tommy John surgery on October 1, 2018.

The 29-year-old, a unique two-way star as a hitter and pitcher, left the Los Angeles Angels as a free agent after six years.

Kelly changes uniform numbers after finalizing his $8 million, one-year contract with the team on Monday, opening No. 17 for Ohtani, who thanked him for the gesture.

“I wasn't going to give it up to anyone,” Kelly said. “If Shohei continues to perform, he will become a future Hall of Famer and I can have my number retired. That's the closest I'll get to the Hall of Fame.”

When asked what Ohtani gave him in return, Kelly said, “Oh, there's a list, but no comment.”

Ohtani rarely spoke to the media during his years in Anaheim, leaving his teammates inundated with questions about the enigmatic superstar.

Kelly said he was willing to answer Ohtani questions “maybe once a week.”

Ohtani's move from Anaheim to Hollywood has fans on both sides of the Pacific buying Dodgers merchandise and inquiring about tickets on the secondary market. The team has yet to begin single-game ticket sales for next season.

Ohtani postpones the deal, all but twenty million dollars, until his contract has a term of ten years

“It's going to be a sellout every game,” Kelly said. “Every game we're in will be like a playoff atmosphere.”

Ahead of his 30th birthday on July 5, Ohtani has a .274 average with 171 home runs, 437 RBIs and 86 stolen bases, along with a 39-19 record with a 3.01 ERA and 608 strikeouts in 481 2/3 innings. Ohtani has 34.7 wins above replacement (WAR), per Baseball Reference.

“I think overall it's a good showing for both sides,” Kelly said. “The Dodgers are competitive every year, and this is one of those things: He's the highest-paid player in all of sports, and we can still add to our team every year that he's a Dodger.”

There are three different evaluations of what the contract is worth in today's dollars.

– For luxury tax purposes, a discount rate of 4.43% is used and the value is $460,767,685. That's the federal intermediate-term rate as defined in Section 1274(d) of the Internal Revenue Code, using the October 2023 rate. The figure means the Dodgers' luxury tax payroll is billed about $46.1 million annually for Ohtani.

– For regular MLB payrolls, a 10% discount rate is used and the value is $282,107,876. That is the JP Morgan Chase prime rate plus 1%, rounded to the nearest whole percentage point, as defined in Article XV(K) of the Collective Bargaining Agreement.

– The players association evaluated the contract at $437,830,563.