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(Reporter Kim Ji-soo, Xports News) Chipper Jones, the legendary third baseman of the U.S. Major League Baseball, expressed his belief that Shohei Ohtani (LA Dodgers) should be evaluated more highly in relation to the size of Juan Soto’s (New York Mets) contract.
On the 18th, the Japanese media ‘Higashi Spor Web’ reported that Chipper Jones appeared as a guest on the American podcast ‘Foul Territory’ and mentioned Soto and Ohtani.
When asked how much he thought Ohtani would have received if he had signed a free agent contract later than Soto, Chipper Jones responded, “$1 billion (approximately 1.4359 trillion won).”
On the 12th, Juan Soto signed a megaton free agent contract with the New York Mets for a 15-year contract, worth a total of $765 million (about KRW 1.0953 trillion). He surpassed Ohtani and became the most expensive sports athlete on Earth.
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When Ohtani transferred from the LA Angels to the Dodgers as a free agent last year, he signed a 10-year contract worth a total of $700 million (about KRW 996.8 billion). Former teammate Mike Trout signed a 12-year contract with the Los Angeles Angels worth $426.5 million (about 563 billion won), as well as NFL quarterback Patrick Mahomes (Kansas City Chiefs), who is the highest paid player in North American professional sports for 10 years. The entire contract worth 450 million dollars (about 594 billion won) was exceeded.
Otani even surpassed the $674 million (approximately 889.7 billion won) that soccer god Lionel Messi signed with FC Barcelona in Primera Liga, the first division of Spanish professional soccer, from 2017 to 2021.
The prevailing expectation was that Otani’s contract exceeding $700 million would be difficult to obtain for the time being. However, Soto ended up earning more money than Ohtani in just one year.
Soto has recorded 936 major league games, a batting average of 0.285, 934 hits, 201 home runs, 592 RBI, and an OPS of 0.953 until this year. This year, in 157 games for the New York Yankees, he swung a bat with a batting average of 0.288, 166 hits, 41 home runs, 109 RBI, and an OPS of 0.988.
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However, there is considerable controversy among fans as to whether Soto’s price was ‘reasonable’. There is no doubt about Soto’s skills, but many are of the opinion that he is not at the level of ‘all-time great’.
In the case of Ohtani, he shows top-level performance as a starting pitcher in the major leagues through his trademark ‘two-hit double duty.’ With their star power, the Dodgers are known to have earned marketing income worth $120 million (approximately 170.8 billion won) this year.
Chipper Jones said, “I’ve heard people say that Juan Soto is the representative hitter of this generation. Soto is a very good hitter, but we use the word representative of this generation too much. A player who fits that description signed a contract last year. “It’s one player (Ohtani),” he said.
He continued, “If Soto had signed a free agent contract before (Ohtani) and received $765 million, and if Ohtani had signed a free agent contract the following year, there is no doubt that Ohtani would have received $1 billion.” He emphasized.
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Chipper Jones, born in 1972, is an American infielder who began his professional career by joining the Atlanta Braves as the first overall pick in the 1990 Major League Baseball Draft. After making his big league debut in 1993, he was a one-club man who only wore an Atlanta uniform until his retirement in 2012.
Chipper Jones became a legend not only in Atlanta but also in the Major League. He left the mark of National League MVP in 1999, Silver Slugger at Third Base in 1999-2000, National League Batting Champion in 2007, and World Series Championship in 1995.
Chipper Jones’ career records in the major league are 2,499 games, batting average of 0.303, 2,726 hits, 468 home runs, 1,619 runs, 1,623 RBI, and OPS of 0.930. In 2018, he was inducted into the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame, standing shoulder to shoulder with legends.
Photo = Xports News DB/Yonhap News
Reporter Jisoo Kim [email protected]
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