Is two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani, widely considered the most sought-after free agent in MLB history, on a plane to Toronto?
That question captivated the baseball world Friday afternoon, as a free-agency process as secretive as it is spellbinding took another turn. Fans were left to judge one insider’s word against another after two contradictory reports.
At 4:01 p.m. ET, Jon Morosi of MLB Network tweeted that Ohtani was en route to Toronto. Just over one hour later, Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported Ohtani was not in Toronto, on a flight to Toronto or anywhere other than his California home.
Sources: Shohei Ohtani is en route to Toronto today.
A representative of his agency, CAA, would not comment when asked about Ohtani’s travel plans.
At this hour, Ohtani does not have a signed agreement with any @MLB team. @MLBNetwork
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) December 8, 2023
Shohei Ohtani is NOT in Toronto.
Ohtani is NOT on a flight to Toronto.
Ohtani is at home in Southern California.— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) December 8, 2023
Since the advent of scoop journalism on social media, few standoffs have been as concrete or compelling as this one.
MLB fans weighed in:
my feet are sweating i swear to god pls dont let us get hurt https://t.co/zgNrZGrIbi
— Jordan Cicchelli
(@jordancicchelli) December 8, 2023
Telling my dad to go pick him up as we speak. https://t.co/INx8YccpBT
— Faizal Khamisa (@FaizalKhamisa) December 8, 2023
You are thrown in the gulag if you're wrong https://t.co/nYWSG4Z4yl
— KevinGohD (@KevinGohD) December 8, 2023
the shohei free agency circus this week https://t.co/7ahiBqsaNU pic.twitter.com/NWWUQSg0we
— kennedi landry (@kennlandry) December 8, 2023
Cuban is beside himself. Driving around downtown Dallas begging (thru texts) Ohtani's family for address to Shohei's home https://t.co/rbNY4uzW3Z
— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) December 8, 2023
My hopes and dreams: https://t.co/9iEPwJnMWE pic.twitter.com/43NoaavRKd
— cole kuiper (@cmkuiper) December 8, 2023
We can confirm that Shohei Ohtani is not in the Merriam-Webster Citation Archives. pic.twitter.com/1o65CgsT9G
— Merriam-Webster (@MerriamWebster) December 8, 2023
“hey mom tell us about twitter during ohtani watch” pic.twitter.com/mMrZGJTCm9
— maha
(@mahaaaay) December 8, 2023
The Shohei Ohtani misinformation going around has made this a day for the books. pic.twitter.com/JupCsHEdwq
— Frankie Cartoscelli (@FCartoscelli3) December 8, 2023
Oscar Ohtani is getting off that plane, and frankly he's cooler than Shohei pic.twitter.com/1ufKPAyH3r
— Grant Brisbee (@GrantBrisbee) December 8, 2023
Blue Jays fans looking for Shohei Ohtani in Toronto…#BlueJays #OhtaniWatch #Ohtani pic.twitter.com/4oS8zmKuCV
— Darrell (@SpiderDarrell) December 8, 2023
