The unicorn of a baseball player signed a unicorn of a contract.
When Shohei Ohtani reached free agency last month, he asked his agent, Nez Balelo, “What if I defer all my salary so that my team has a better chance to compete?” Balelo says he dove into collective bargaining agreement language and found no limit on how much salary a player could defer. The only provision: a player must be paid at least the minimum salary.
The minimum salary for next season is $740,000. Over the next 10 years, Ohtani, by his choice, will be paid $2 million annually by his new team, the Dodgers. Ohtani asked for and agreed to have 97% of his salary—$680 million of the $700 million in the 10-year contract—deferred without interest payable over 10 years after this playing contract expires.
