Shohei Ohtani: Angels GM Perry Minasian speaks out on Dodgers signing two-way star as he admits ‘life goes on’ after losing out to rivals

Following two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani's decision to sign a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Los Angles Dodgers, LA Angels general manager Perry Minasian is already scrambling to move on.

“He's someone I personally have a lot of respect for, the organization was great to have,” Minasian said Friday.

“He's one of the best players to ever play for this organization, and we understand that, but life goes on. We're going to spend the rest of the offseason working as hard as we can to put a really competitive team on the field.”

He repeatedly declined to say anything substantive about the negotiations that ended with Ohtani choosing the Dodgers over the Angels, Giants and any other interested club.

Minasian wasn't in charge when Ohtani chose the Angels six years ago and also declined to comment on multiple reports that the Halos were offered a chance to match the Dodgers' massive offer, but he declined.

Los Angeles Angels general manager Perry Minasian said “life goes on” after Ohtani

“I'm not going to go into details,” Minasian said. 'I understand the question. When it comes to negotiations, it's not something we make public, I make it public.

“I have a great relationship with Nez, a great relationship with Sho. The organization has a good relationship with both and we congratulate him on his deal and wish him nothing but the best.”

Ohtani's agent, Nez Balelo, said Thursday that the Angels are “special to Shohei” and “a place he really enjoyed playing.” He loved the people there, everything. The Angels had every chance.”

Whether the Angels could have even kept Ohtani at a $700 million offer remains fairly uncertain, largely because they were never a winner with him. Ohtani cited his desire to win as the biggest factor in his decision to leave the Angels, who are on a major league-worst streak of eight straight losing seasons and nine straight non-playoff seasons.

A few hours after Ohtani announced his decision last Saturday, the Angels quickly took down Ohtani's towering mural, which took pride of place at the main entrance to Angel Stadium.

Across the same plaza is the team store where the Angels have sold millions of dollars worth of Ohtani-related merchandise to fans who came from across North America and Asia to witness the talents of a special athlete.

Ohtani's decision is even more painful for the Angels and their fans, as the team decided not to trade him at the deadline this year despite knowing there was a significant chance they would lose him for nothing more than a compensatory draft pick.

The Halos were 65-61 at the trade deadline, and Moreno authorized Minasian to make several acquisitions in a desperate attempt to end the playoff drought – and then they promptly lost seven games in a row and went into an 8-25 skid, eventually ending up with their second. straight season at 73-89.

Ohtani became the Angels' first-ever two-time unanimous MVP award winner

“We played really good baseball, (and) we definitely had a chance to compete the rest of the time,” Minasian said.

'It did not work. There are zero regrets. We felt like we had a really good team. It just didn't work. From an injury perspective, we didn't have guys back that we thought we would. We did not perform as we expected. That said, we took a chance on trying to win and I don't regret it.”

Minasian said he plans to add players to the Angels' mediocre roster, and Moreno has given him the financial ability to do so.

Along with the craters left by Ohtani's departure, the Angels must upgrade a pitching staff that struggled in 2023 while deciding what to do with the designated hitter spot that Ohtani occupied for six years.

Minasian said the Angels have not yet decided whether to sign a regular DH or rotate other hitters through the spot, specifically by giving defensive rest to oft-injured veterans Mike Trout and Anthony Rendon.

“This is a group that wants to win,” Minasian said of Moreno. “Financially, what ownership has promised over the years, I think that says it all. We're going to make this team better this offseason. It's still early in terms of from a market perspective and what's available…'