The San Francisco Giants don’t exactly have a history of acquiring top talent from the Asian market.
That’s unlikely to change anytime soon, as San Francisco can only offer two-way Japanese sensation Shohei Ohtani $300,000 of their bonus pool money this offseason, and coming off a 98 loss season, probably aren’t the preferred destination for the potential superstar.
Giants broadcaster Mike Krukow was asked about the Giants odds of possibly acquiring Ohtani this offseason, and gave another reason why it’s unlikely he’d come to the Bay Area: He’ll probably want to play for an American League club.
“This guy is a double talent,” Krukow said. “I mean he’s a hitter and a pitcher and I think he’s destined for the American League. I don’t think you’re going to see a National League team win this guy.”
Ohtani, who is only 24-years old, has been a top pitcher and hitter for five seasons in the Japanese league, but doesn’t have the track record other successful Asian stars had before coming over to the states according to Krukow.
“I would love to see the Giants get more active in the Asian market,” Krukow said. “There’s a lot of really great players over there. But here’s the big question mark with Otani: You don’t know what he’s capable of, he’s never done it. With Ichiro, he played 10 years of professional baseball at the highest level in Japan, he was an established stud. You knew what he could do and what he couldn’t do. You don’t know that yet with Otani, he’s yet to find himself as a player. Is he going to be a pitcher, is he going to be a hitter? So I think there’s a huge question mark as to what he’s capable of doing.”
Listen to the full interview below. To hear Krukow’s take on Ohtani, skip to the 5:40 mark.