Ohtani gets paid

Shohei Ohtani is still only arbitration-eligible, meaning he’s still being significantly underpaid compared to his production — even with his terrible 2020 season and his 2018 pitching injury thrown in, but the two-year contract announced Monday, $3 million this year and $5.5 million for 2022, likely represent new highs for him.

Read the Kyodo News (English) story.

The 2016 MVP of Japan’s Pacific League, earned a reported 270 million yen ($2.4 million) as a 22-year-old in 2017 with the Nippon Ham Fighters. As a 23-year-old, MLB and its union worked to declare him an amateur in its latest CBA, meaning a limited signing bonus and a guaranteed minor league contract.

The Nikkan Sports did a nifty little table of his earnings through 2020, with the understanding that Japanese figures are just what the player and team want you to hear and don’t always reflect reality. This means it is possible that Ohtani earned far more in 2017 than the figure that was officially leaked and that his 2020 salary is not yet the highest of his career.

YearYenDollarsAwards
201315 mil.$147,687
201430 mil.$272,477
2015100 mil.$794,211PL Best 9 (P)
2016200 mil.$1.74 mil.PL Best 9 (P, DH), PL MVP
2017270 mil.$2.31 mil.
2018 60 mil.$545,000AL ROY
2019 71 mil.$650,000
202075 mil.$700,000
2021315 mil.$3 mil.
2022577 mil.$5.5 mil.
Dollar figures prior to 2018, and yen figures after are based on IRS annual exchange rates for that year. Rates for 2021 are for Feb. 8, 2021.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.