It’s been long enough ago that some may not remember the Toronto Blue Jays thought they were going to sign Shohei Ohtani before he ultimately joined the Los Angeles Dodgers.
But John Schneider evidently has not forgotten.
The Blue Jays manager requested the team merch back that they gave him during their courtship when Ohtani was a free agent after the 2023 MLB season.
Ohtani, of course, signed a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Dodgers after spending his first six seasons with the rival Los Angeles Angels. But the Dodgers weren’t the only team trying to sign Ohtani, since Toronto presented an aggressive pitch.
Ohtani and the Dodgers and Blue Jays will meet in the World Series for the first time. Game 1 is Friday night in Toronto.
John Schneider: The Blue Jays Gave Hats, Jackets To Ohtani, His Dog
You might not remember Toronto fans tracking private planes to see if Ohtani was heading north of the border to sign with the Jays. You may have forgotten that the Blue Jays were considered among the finalists to land the then-two-time AL MVP, who is about to win his second straight NL MVP this year.
Yet, Schneider is apparently holding onto that, since and he took a barb at Ohtani at media day Thursday. The Blue Jays manager revealed they gave hats and other team merch to Ohtani’s dog Decoy, as well.
“I hope he brought his hat — the Blue Jays hat that he took from us in our meeting. I hope he brought it back finally,” Schneider said wryly, “and the jacket for Decoy. It’s like, give us our stuff back already.”
When asked, Ohtani said Schneider may be able to recoup the gear when the series shifts to LA for Game 3 on Monday.
“It’s in my garage,” Ohtani said through an interpreter, according to the AP.
All joking aside, Schneider provided some details on the meeting, and Ohtani’s consideration affirmed the progress he and the organization were making — even though he ultimately chose the Dodgers.
“When we met with him, you felt good about it, and you felt good about the feedback he was giving about our organization and opportunity here,” Schneider said. “But you never really know what a player’s feeling in free agency, and there’s a lot of things that have to line up for them personally, too, so you can’t really think about what if.
“I think things worked out the way they’re meant to work out.”
John Schneider: Ohtani’s ‘A Great Player’
The Dodgers are heading to Toronto as a favorite. They are 9-1 in the postseason, and Ohtani earned the NLCS MVP with a game for the ages where he hit three homers and threw six shutout innings while striking out 10 in LA’s sweep-clinching 5-2 win.
So even though Schneider was extremely complimentary of Ohtani, he and his team are coming to play. Toronto is coming off a dramatic seven-game series win in the ALCS over the Seattle Mariners.
“He’s a great player,” Schneider said of Ohtani. “But that aside, I think that we have a great team and just an unbelievable cast of characters and players.”
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