MLB Rumors: Shohei Ohtani's Dodgers Contract Initially Drew 'Fury' from Rival Teams

Before the full details of Shohei Ohtani's contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers were made available, the feeling from other teams across Major League Baseball was not a happy one.

Per ESPN's Buster Olney, the initial reaction to the deal and reports of deferred money was one of "fury" around the league because there was some thought the Dodgers "might have skirted payroll rules with the unusual structure of the contract."

The deal was initially reported as being for 10 years and $700 million with a significant portion of his salary being deferred to lower the impact on the competitive balance tax for the Dodgers in an effort to allow them to more easily sign players.

On Monday, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reported Ohtani agreed to defer $68 million of his $70 million average annual salary until the end of the contract. He will be paid the remaining $680 million of the deal in annual installments from 2034 to '43.

MLB's collective bargaining agreement between the players and owners contains specific language about how there are "no limitations" on the amount of deferred money in a player's contract.

Per FanGraphs' Jon Becker, the actual present value of Ohtani's deal is $460.8 million because money now is worth more than in the future due to factors like inflation.

Despite the $2 million in salary that Ohtani will earn for the next 10 seasons, the CBT hit for the Dodgers will be the average of his $460.8 million salary over the life of the contract ($46.08 million).

Olney noted that once the dust settled on all of the numbers and maneuvering done by Ohtani and the Dodgers, the team "did nothing wrong" in finding a contract that worked for the two-time AL MVP and got him to sign with the reigning NL West champs.

Even though Ohtani's camp can claim the $700 million deal as the richest contract in the history of pro sports, that's not exactly right. The $460.8 million in present value of the deal is the richest in MLB history, surpassing Mike Trout's $426.5 million contract with the Los Angeles Angels.

Ohtani's $46.08 million CBT hit is also the biggest in MLB going into next season, clearing the $43.3 million mark shared by Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander.