Angels' Shohei Ohtani Has 'Earned the Right' to Test Free Agency, Agent Says

Nez Balelo, who is Shohei Ohtani's agent, made it sound as though the two-way star will not sign an extension with the Los Angeles Angels before the 2023 season at the end of which he'll be an unrestricted free agent.

"I've always been open to it," Balelo said when asked about negotiating during spring training, per Alden Gonzalez of ESPN. "But there's several layers to this one, and Shohei's earned the right to play through the year, explore free agency, and we'll see where it shakes out."

That Ohtani and his representation would be interested in exploring free agency doesn't come as much of a surprise.

After all, he could be lined up to take home the biggest contract in the sport's history next offseason as someone who can anchor a lineup as a hitter and serve as the ace of a rotation as a pitcher. Whichever team signs him will essentially be adding an impact player in two different areas, and he is just 28 years old.

Gonzalez listed the Los Angeles Dodgers, New York Mets, Chicago Cubs, San Francisco Giants and Seattle Mariners as potential suitors and suggested the final contract could come in around $500 million.

There is also the additional layer of the Angels' ownership, as Arte Moreno decided to end the exploratory process for a potential sale and keep the team in his family.

While Balelo said that kept things "business as usual," Andy Martino of SNY reported in January that Moreno's decision "made it far less likely that Ohtani, a free agent after this season, would stay in Anaheim."

The Angels finished with a losing record in each of the last seven years and have been to the playoffs just one time since the 2009 campaign under Moreno's ownership.

"He's so competitive, like all great players are, so of course they want to experience postseason, of course they'd love to be in the World Series," Balelo said of Ohtani. "But is that the deciding factor? I don't know. We'll just have to wait and see."

Signing elsewhere could be the best way for Ohtani to maximize his contract and chances at competing for a World Series, and it seems like he will be hitting free agency after the season.