Ohtani and the Blue Jays will be forever tied after what happened in December 2023. Some of the heartache and hostility has faded, but Ohtani has stuck to the Blue Jays. This organization nearly landed the biggest star in baseball history, only to come up painfully short to the Dodgers. During Ohtani’s first trip back to Toronto in 2024, John Schneider was asked about what had just happened that winter between his team and Ohtani. He smiled, took a moment to think and let a detail sneak out.
“If anything, just tell him we want our Blue Jays hat back that he took with him after our meeting,” Schneider said.
Ohtani took more than a hat from that meeting. This is where the heartbreak lives. The Blue Jays didn’t just float an offer to Ohtani; they put on a full-court press, involving every corner of the organization as they went stride-for-stride financially with the Dodgers, who eventually signed Ohtani to a 10-year, $700 million deal.
The drama had built leading into the 2023 Winter Meetings at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center in Nashville, but they finally boiled over on Dec. 4. General manager Ross Atkins was supposed to meet with the media that day in a suite, but moments prior, that session pivoted to a Zoom call. Atkins sat on that call, wearing a black jacket and white shirt in front of a blank white wall, refusing to admit where he was or what he was doing. It was unforgettable theatre, but it was necessary.
Atkins, Schneider, president Mark Shapiro and chairman Edward Rogers were all at the Blue Jays’ complex in Dunedin, Fla., courting Ohtani.
The complex was empty that day. This had to happen with complete secrecy. Younger players were told that there was a Rogers ownership meeting that day while some big leaguers, understanding what was happening, zipped their mouths shut and nodded along. Schneider and the Blue Jays’ executives stood in a room overlooking the empty parking lot, watching for the black SUV to pull in.
“It was like the president was coming. Seriously,” Schneider said in 2024.
Ohtani walked every inch of the complex that day. At one point, he froze in front of a TV when he saw two Blue Jays playing catch. Sensing his worry that these players were on the complex grounds, the Blue Jays quickly explained to Ohtani that they were across town at TD Ballpark, the club’s spring home. The Blue Jays’ entire world belonged to Ohtani then.
One of the last stops on the tour was the Spring Training clubhouse. Inside were lockers set up for Ohtani with jerseys, workout gear and all of his favorite accessories, right down to the finest details. Surely, someone in the organization was tasked with finding out whether Ohtani likes pulp in his orange juice or how he takes his coffee. It was all right in front of Ohtani.
Then, an image those involved will never forget. Ohtani packed up the lockers and took the bags with him. No one had expected this. As he walked back to their SUV, they saw one more thing. It was Ohtani’s dog, Decoy, running behind him wearing the Canadian dog jacket the Blue Jays had bought for him.
This is how close it was. For all of the drama — from the flight Ohtani was never on to the eventual Instagram post from Ohtani that broke a nation’s heart — it’s important to remember just how close this was, just how real this was. The Blue Jays — with their aggressive, admirable pursuit — nearly landed Shohei Ohtani.
What would that world have looked like? Even less than two years removed, it’s always felt like a fork in the road for the Blue Jays, the life they could have had running next to the life they live. Would Vladimir Guerrero Jr. still have signed a $500 million extension? Would they have spent even bigger around Ohtani?
Those roads run closer to one another than we ever could have dreamed.
The Blue Jays have been reborn. Their 2024 season, fresh off the cruel winter spent pursuing Ohtani, felt so lifeless. This organization is alive again, though. There’s no replacing Ohtani, the most uniquely gifted baseball player to ever walk this earth, but this is not the NBA. This is not Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman versus Guerrero, George Springer and Bo Bichette. This World Series is a 26-man roster versus a 26-man roster, and as we see every October, stars will emerge who we never saw coming.
The Dodgers are a powerhouse. Even with the Blue Jays winning the American League as its No. 1 seed, this will be advertised as David versus Goliath, the upstart feel-good bunch of Canadians against the almighty Dodgers, who never run out of money or talent. It will be advertised as the Blue Jays versus Shohei Ohtani.
“Never count us out. We’re going to do everything in our power to try to not make baseball evil again,” Schneider said, laughing after the Game 7 ALCS win. “We know they’re a great team. I know we’re a great team.”
Ohtani got away once. For a time, it felt like that wound would always be there, whether those involved wanted to admit it or not. Baseball has given the Blue Jays another chance, though. For two years, this organization couldn’t escape the ties to Ohtani, couldn’t escape the label of always finishing second.
Once again, they’ve found him. Once again, Ohtani is right in front of the Blue Jays.
