Did the Angels do the right thing in pulling Shohei Ohtani off the trade market?

The general consensus is a tricky thing. Certain ideas, once they take hold, are seen as obvious, sacred even, and to buck them makes you, well… crazy.

Shohei Ohtani being traded by the Los Angeles Angels for some outlandish amount was generally held to be an inevitable given, despite all of the protests from Arte Moreno that he had no interest in making such a deal.

That general consensus had the Angels pegged as sellers, and Ohtani as the jewel in their crown, their most valuable asset. And Arte Moreno confirmed, in popular opinion at least, his status as crazy by doubling down on his word.

Shohei Ohtani, Moreno announced, was not available at any price. Confirming at the same time the Angels status, not as sellers, but as buyers, Moreno picked up Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo López from the Chicago White Sox to help bolster their bullpen.

The baseball media universe seemed staggered by the news. So much ink had been expended debating whether Ohtani would wind up with the Dodgers or the Yankees that it seemed nobody bothered to listen to either the Angels or Ohtani himself, who has repeatedly expressed a desire to win with the Angels.

That general consensus? It is fairly united in the idea that this is a terrible move for the Angels. Ohtani will not be able to get them into the playoffs this season, so the theory goes, and they will end up losing him for nothing after next season.

Compounding this gloom-and-doom view of the Angels’ future is the fact that in order to get their hands on Giolito and López, Los Angeles had to trade away catcher Edgar Quero and left-hander Ky Bush, their numbers two and three prospects. But the concerns of the many are not shared by the organization.

“Ohtani is a special player having a unique season with a team that has a chance to win,” said GM Perry Minasian. “And to me, that’s grounds for trying to improve the club. Whether it works or whether it doesn’t, I can go to bed at night and say, ‘You know what? We did this for the right reasons and we’re giving ourselves a chance.’ I’m excited to see how we play.”

So how does the outlook for the Angels’ season stack up? Well, not bad as it turns out.

Only 6.5 games out in the AL West, and only four games out of Wild Card contention, the Angels are chasing the Astros and have more than a sporting chance of closing on them in August. They have won nine of twelve games since the All Star break and will be heading into their most competitive month of the calendar, facing the Braves, Mariners, Astros, Rangers, and Rays, amongst others.

Apart from Ohtani, the Angels pitching has been blasé at best. While the two-way phenom is often lauded for his feats with the bat, in fact that is the reason that he is the front runner for league MVP, his pitching has been their bright spark. The Angels have no trouble scoring. Their 5.02 runs per game is sixth highest in all of baseball.

No, it is on the mound that Los Angeles have needed help. And this move gives it to them. While the naysayers point out Giolito’s middling 6 and 6 record with a 3.79 ERA in 21 starts, his 131 strikeouts are good enough to see him tenth in the American League. Prior to this move, he was seen as a favorite target for the Rangers, Astros, and Rays in moves to bolster their own bullpens. That same consensus view saw all of those as solid moves, even while decrying this one as a bad deal.

Another point to make in this move is that it comes, if reports by ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez are to be trusted, at Ohtani’s request. The three-time All-Star has stated his preference to remain with the Angels for the stretch run this season, and management has listened.

Arte Moreno has stated time and again that, far from resigning themselves to the eventual loss of Ohtani in free agency, they were in fact putting together an offer designed to keep him in Anaheim for the long term. While most in the press have seen this as pie-in-the-sky dreaming, there is no reason to doubt that the Angels will make a run at it. Keeping Ohtani with the Angels this season makes that job, if not easier, certainly a little more feasible.

In negotiations, you always look for a chink, a glimmer of hope, that you may be able to find common ground. A “no” is never a no. It is just “not yet.” If Ohtani prefers to stay in Anaheim this season, then there is a crack, a glimmer, for Moreno to work with. And when you are talking about a talent like Shohei Ohtani, that crack, no matter how slight, is one that the Angels will gladly take.