Major League Baseball (MLB) and the Baseball Writers Association of America have announced the finalists for the four major awards: Most Valuable Player, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year, and Manager of the Year. The awards, based on regular season performance, had voting completed before the postseason began. The winners will be revealed during a live MLB Network broadcast.
Among the notable finalists are Shohei Ohtani and Gerrit Cole, who are up for the American League honors, and Craig Counsell, who is nominated for Manager of the Year. Ohtani, the Los Angeles Angels two-way star, is now a free agent and is expected to command more than half a billion dollars despite undergoing a second UCL surgery and being unavailable to pitch for the 2024 season.
Potential suitors for Ohtani include the New York Mets, New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants, Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays, and Seattle Mariners. However, the degree of interest varies among these teams and other surprise teams are expected to join the pursuit. Ohtani's preference is for the process to play out as privately as possible.
Predictions from various MLB insiders and writers about Ohtani's potential landing spot have been made. A poll of 58 MLB.com voters predicted the Los Angeles Dodgers as Ohtani's next team. MLB Trade Rumors' annual story and FoxSports.com staff writers also predicted the Dodgers as his destination. The Athletic's Jim Bowden foresees Ohtani signing with the defending World Series-champion Rangers, while ESPN's Buster Olney views the Dodgers as the favorites to sign Ohtani. MLB Network insider Jon Heyman suggests the Dodgers' decision not to make a qualifying offer to designated hitter J.D. Martinez was motivated by Ohtani's free agency.