GM: Angels 'Would Love' to Sign Shohei Ohtani to New Contract After Trade Rumors

Amid reports that the Los Angeles Angels have taken two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani off the market ahead of the MLB trade deadline on Aug. 1, the organization is now pivoting to the next important order of business.

Making sure it can keep Ohtani in Anaheim.

The AL MVP front-runner is set to hit free agency this offseason and will be the most coveted player in the history of the sport with some reports saying that he could earn himself a contract worth up to $600 million, making him baseball's highest-paid star by a pretty wide margin.

And while there are certain to be a number of attractive suitors for Ohtani, particularly on the West Coast, Angels general manager Perry Minasian is comfortable with the decision to keep him past the trade deadline and is hoping to have him around for a lot longer.

"I love Shohei Ohtani," Minasian said ahead a doubleheader against the Detroit Tigers on Thursday. "He comes in, prepares, works, goes out and performs on a nightly basis. Obviously, does both [hitting and pitching]. He's a great teammate. He takes this really seriously. He eats it. He sleeps it.

"He's somebody that we would love to have going forward."

Along with their surge prior to the trade deadline—just four games out of an AL Wild Card slot—the Angels also decided to hold onto Ohtani because they were reportedly underwhelmed by the packages they were being offered for him.

"We're going to roll the dice and see what happens," Minasian said.

It also helps that Ohtani apparently prefers staying with the organization as it pushes toward a potential playoff berth over being traded to a team that is already in title contention.

To be fair, Los Angeles has already begun its push to try and upgrade the roster, acquiring right-handers Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo López from the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday.

The organization will have to hope that this roster is able to make some noise towards the end of the season as it has failed to build a contender around Ohtani and fellow superstar Mike Trout since either of them have been in town.

And if the Angels want to keep Ohtani around, they'll have to show him that they are a team capable of getting into the title race soon or they may just lose him to a West Coast rival.

Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported earlier this month that the Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants and San Diego Padres are among the favorites to land Ohtani in free agency given that the superstar.

Wherever he ends up next year, whether it's back with the Angels or elsewhere, Ohtani will be an automatic game-changer for that organization. He currently leads the majors in home runs and OPS.

He also has a 3.71 ERA and a 1.119 WHIP while also ranking among the league leaders in opponents' batting average and strikeouts.