How Oddsmakers View Red Sox’s Chances Of Trading For Shohei Ohtani

The Boston Red Sox feel like a long shot to acquire Shohei Ohtani before the Major League Baseball trade deadline.

And oddsmakers agree.

DraftKings Sportsbook released odds for which team Ohtani will take his first regular season plate appearance or throw his first regular season pitch for after the Aug. 1 MLB trade deadline. The Red Sox, as of Friday afternoon, appeared well down the betting board at +2500.

The favorites? Well, that would be Ohtani’s current team, the Los Angeles Angels, despite growing speculation the Halos might trade the two-way superstar with their postseason hopes dwindling. LA had -170 odds to keep Ohtani, who’s set to become a free agent this offseason.

The favorites among outside teams? Look no further than the Angels’ neighbors, the Los Angeles Dodgers, who are flush with prospects and cash. The Dodgers, with +800 odds, could wait until the offseason and try to sign Ohtani on the open market, but relinquishing assets to land him now would boost their chances of winning the World Series in 2023 while also giving them an exclusive negotiating window with an eye toward keeping Ohtani long term.

Here’s the full list of Ohtani next-team odds provided by DraftKings Sportsbook, as of Friday afternoon:

Los Angeles Angels -170
Los Angeles Dodgers +800
San Francisco Giants +900
Any other team +1000
Atlanta Braves +1100
New York Yankees +1400
Baltimore Orioles +1500
New York Mets +1800
Tampa Bay Rays +2200
Philadelphia Phillies +2500
Boston Red Sox +2500
Toronto Blue Jays +2800

The Angels definitely have a difficult decision to make. Their willingness, or lack thereof, to trade Ohtani likely hinges on two factors: their place in the American League standings and how they feel about being able to re-sign him this winter.

The Angels entered Friday with a 49-48 record, five games back of the AL’s third wild-card spot. It’s not an insurmountable deficit, by any means, but they face plenty of competition and remain without Mike Trout, who’s on the injured list.

If the Halos are confident in their ability to re-sign Ohtani this offseason, they probably should keep the AL MVP frontrunner. If not, they need to seriously consider a trade, otherwise they’ll risk losing him for nothing more than draft-pick compensation.