Dodgers’ Strong Farm System May Have Helped Them Land Shohei Ohtani
Over the years, the Los Angeles Dodgers have had one of the best farm systems in baseball — and it appears to have finally paid off. Just not in the traditional way.
Before joining the Dodgers, Shohei Ohtani explored his options and interviewed with multiple teams in search of the best fit.
Tom Verducci of Sports Illustrated reported that one of the main reasons Ohtani chose the Los Angeles Dodgers over the Toronto Blue Jays was due to the Dodgers’ highly-touted farm system and ability to develop players.
“When Shohei Ohtani visited the Dodgers on Dec. 1, he made a point of asking the club about its player development philosophy and the state of its minor league system. Los Angeles was ranked by MLB.com midway through the 2023 season as having the sixth-best system in baseball. The Blue Jays, who were next on Ohtani’s limited free-agent tour, checked in at No. 25.”
Per Tom Verucci
Over the years, the Dodgers’ farm system has been one of the best in baseball after having names like Cody Bellinger, Corey Seager and Walker Buehler come through it.
While Ohtani was great with the Los Angeles Angels and had a good supporting cast over the years that included Mike Trout, Anthony Rendon, and Albert Pujols, the one thing that plagued them during his time was injuries and the lack of depth coming from the farm system.
While the Angels have put together a decent group of young names in Nolan Schanuel, Zach Neto, Logan O’Hoppe and Mickey Moniak, that was still not enough depth when it was all said and done.
The Dodgers’ organization boasts an abundance of talent, from the MLB roster down to the minor league roster. Baseball America ranked them as the No. 1 farm system in baseball at the end of the season, with Michael Bush, Nick Frasso, Diego Cartaya, and Gavin Stone among the standout players.
Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports
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The Dodgers farm system is obviously a good one and has been for a long time as well as the main team. That being said it kinda hurts to see some players who maybe if they got the chance elsewhere. Could really show their stuff.
Diego Cartaya for instance has the awesome Will Smith blocking him and Austin Barnes as the back up elder statesman also taking a spot.Although it’s great to have these guys in the farm system ready for the big “if needed” situation. I just feel for these guys always hoping to get a chance of course never wanting it to be because of someone else getting injured.