How Shohei Ohtani Became Baseball’s Biggest Star
Huddle Up is a 3x weekly newsletter that breaks down the business and money behind sports. If you are not already a subscriber, sign up and join 93,000+ others who receive it directly in their inbox each week. Today At A Glance:The World Baseball Classic kicked off this week in cities across the world, and Shohei Ohtani is already the star of the show. So today’s newsletter breaks down how the “World Cup of Baseball” actually works and how Ohtani has quickly become the face of baseball — despite many pundits previously saying that wasn’t possible. Today’s Newsletter Is Brought To You By Goldin!
The world’s top 500 sports cards have an ROI of 855% over the last 15 years, compared to just 175% for the S&P 500 — and there is no better place to start or build your collectible portfolio than Goldin. Goldin is the leading and most trusted destination for some of the most significant pieces of sports and pop culture collectibles. Their marketplace is open 24/7, they have weekly auctions starting at just $5, and there is something for every collector. And here’s the best part: Goldin is offering No Marketplace Fees for items sold up to $10k. So vault and list your items on Goldin’s Marketplace now to enjoy this limited-time offer. I’m a big fan, and I think you will be too.
Friends, The fifth edition of the World Baseball Classic kicked off this week. The tournament first started in 2006 and has quickly become the premier global tournament of baseball — because baseball isn’t always an Olympic sport (it was dropped for the 2012, 2016, and 2024 Summer games), and MLB players can’t play due to the schedule. So here’s how it works: The World Baseball Classic is run by MLB and includes 20 teams from countries all over the world, including the United States, China, Japan, Korea, Australia, Cuba, Italy, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, and the Dominican Republic. The format is similar to the FIFA World Cup, with four pools of five teams competing in group play, and then the top two teams from each group advancing to the knockout stage. The remaining eight teams then play single-elimination knockout games, and the winner will be crowned via a championship game on March 21st in Miami. WBC Group Stage Locations
WBC Group Stage Participants
WBC Tournament Format
And given that this has quickly become the premier global tournament of baseball, the WBC has attracted some of the world’s best players. For example, this year’s tournament includes Mike Trout, Mookie Betts, Manny Machado, and Juan Soto. But still, the tournament’s biggest star is undoubtedly Shohei Ohtani of Japan.
For those that don’t already know, Shohei Ohtani, aka “Shotime,” is a two-way baseball player (DH and pitcher) who plays for the Los Angeles Angels of MLB. Ohtani is 28 years old, stands at 6-4, and weighs 210 pounds. He was the first pick in the Japanese baseball league draft in 2012 (at 18 years old) and played for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters for five years — the same team as Yu Darvish. Ohtani then signed a deal with the Los Angeles Angels in 2017, and made his MLB debut the following year in 2018, winning the AL rookie of the year award. But Ohtani isn’t your typical player — he can hit bombs *and* throw 100+ mph. And after dealing with injuries his first few years in MLB, Ohtani has become a bonafide superstar. For example, he unanimously won American League MVP and was named a Silver Slugger in 2021, and he is already a 2x MLB All-Star (2021 and 2022). Look at it this way: MLB has been around for more than 100 years, yet Shohei Ohtani is the only player ever to hit 30 home runs and throw 100 strikeouts in a single season — and he did it in two consecutive seasons. That’s how dominate Shohei Ohtani is. “He has redefined what a baseball player can be,” Jeff Passan said in 2022. He is more than the Giannis, Mahomes, or Haaland of his craft. He is the unicorn of unicorns.” And truthfully, you could make the argument that Ohtani is already a 4x All-Star — because he was selected as a pitcher and DH in those 2021 and 2022 honors, becoming the first player in MLB history to be selected as both a pitcher and hitter. But most importantly, this level of success has turned Shohei Ohtani into baseball’s biggest star. For example, MLB helped Shohei Ohtani launch his Instagram account in 2020 and he has posted just 34 times over the last few years, but the Japanese star has already passed 2.5 million followers — or 25% more than any other MLB player.
Shohei Ohtani was also named as the cover athlete for MLB The Show 22. He was the most-searched player on MLB Film Room last year, domestically and internationally, and Ohtani played in all 10 of the highest-viewed MLB regular season games in 2021. And Ohtani-mania is even crazier in his hometown of Oshu City, Japan, where everyone wears Ohtani’s jersey on the 17th day of every month, and there’s a replica statue of his hand in city hall for people to shake when they visit. Oh yeah, there are also 20 journalists in Japan whose sole job is to cover Shohei Ohtani — not the Angels or MLB — just Shohei Ohtani, according to GQ.
Furthermore, when you look at global search trends on Google, it’s even more apparent that Shohei Ohtani has become the biggest name in baseball, despite Aaron Judge breaking the single-season American League home run record last year.
So what does all of this mean? Well, when you combine Ohtani’s talent and popularity with his global appeal and charisma, he is the epitome of a sports marketer’s dream. For example, Ohtani has signed more than ten endorsement deals over the last few years, including when he recently ended his eight-year relationship with the Japanese brand Asics to sign a multi-year footwear and apparel deal with New Balance. Shohei Ohtani’s Endorsement Portfolio
And after leading all MLB players with a $6 million endorsement portfolio in 2021, Ohtani expanded his portfolio and now makes $20 million annually in endorsement income, according to Forbes. For context, that’s $13.5 million more than the next closest player, Bryce Harper, who has an endorsement portfolio worth $6.5 million. MLB’s Biggest Endorsement Portfolios (Annual Income)
And here’s the craziest part: Ohtani recently signed a 1-year, $30 million extension with the LA Angels, but he was the 289th highest-paid player in MLB when he won MVP in 2021, and many expect him to sign a long-term deal worth more than $500 million this offseason — smashing Mike Trout’s record $426.5 million deal in 2019. Largest Contracts In MLB History
So my point is simple, despite people like Stephen A. Smith claiming Shohei Ohtani can’t be the face of baseball because he “needs an interpreter so you can understand what the hell he’s saying in this country,” the data and insights are clear. Shohei Ohtani is already the face of Major League Baseball, and he’s not going anywhere anytime soon. Thanks, as always, for reading today’s email. I hope everyone has a great weekend, and if you enjoyed this breakdown, please share it with your friends. See you on Monday! Interested in advertising with Huddle Up? Email me. Your feedback helps me improve Huddle Up. How did you like today’s post? Loved | Great | Good | Meh | Bad Extra Credit: The (Growing) Business of NASCARToday’s podcast is from a panel I moderated at the 2023 MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference presented by ESPN. I sat down with NASCAR President Steve Phelps, Trackhouse Racing team owner Justin Marks, and Sonoma Raceway GM Jill Gregory, and we discussed the growth of NASCAR, how they use data to improve the fan experience, the future of content marketing in sports, and much more. You can listen to the podcast via Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Enjoy!
Huddle Up is a 3x weekly newsletter that breaks down the business and money behind sports. If you are not already a subscriber, sign up and join 93,000+ others who receive it directly in their inbox each week.
Read Huddle Up in the app
Listen to posts, join subscriber chats, and never miss an update from Joe Pompliano.
|
