Ohtani (ankle), who was officially posted Friday, will have until Dec. 22 to reach an agreement with an MLB team, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports.
MLB owners unanimously ratified the new Japanese posting agreement, and now the top two-way player of the era will have three weeks to sign with a club. Ohtani is currently in Los Angeles and is expected to begin meeting with clubs as soon as next week. The three teams with the most international bonus pool money available are the Rangers ($3.535 million), Yankees ($3.5 million) and Twins ($3.07 million), but with all 30 teams relatively close in what they can offer Ohtani, his decision is not likely to be significantly impacted by the money he gets on this initial agreement. He has the potential to be an SP1 immediately, thanks to a Noah Syndergaard-esque power fastball/power slider combination. Additionally, he has plus-plus raw power and has been clocked as an 80-grade runner, so there is seemingly nothing he can't do. That said, some evaluators think he could struggle, at least initially, to hit for a high average, due to a power-oriented approach. Ohtai is believed to desire to pitch and play either the field or DH in the majors. He underwent ankle surgery in October but should be ready for spring training.