Angels GM addresses Shohei Ohtani trade rumors

Shohei Ohtani is in the midst of another banner campaign. The phenom leads the majors with 24 home runs and 58 RBIs. Ohtani's been great on the mound as well with a 6-2 record, 3.29 ERA with 105 strikeouts. 

As steady as Ohtani's been, there's been a lot of buzz that he could be a trade deadline candidate because he's in the last year of his contract. However, the Angels are currently 41-34, one of the three American League Wild Card teams, and five games behind the AL West leading Texas Rangers. 

While the Angels might not be major buyers at the trade deadline, it doesn't sound like they'll be sellers. General manager Perry Minasian made it clear he doesn't foresee Ohtani going anywhere.

“I think anybody who has watched us play or looked where we’re at in the standings, I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, we like him and we hope he’s here a long time,” Minasian said, per MLB.com. “It’s pretty self-explanatory with where we’re at.”

Ohtani, 28, has a career-best slash line of .295/.379/.623, and it will be overwhelmingly difficult for the Angels to re-sign him. If the Angels don't trade Ohtani they'll just receive draft compensation back. Conversely, if the Angels trade Ohtani they'd receive a lot back for him but risk ruining team morale. Minasian has to balance those two conflicting thoughts and do what's best for the team in the short and long term alike. 

The Angels haven't made the playoffs since 2014, and greats of the game like Ohtani and Mike Trout are due a postseason appearance. The question is will the Angels their hot streak out well past the deadline? Or will the front office be offered a great trade package for Shohei that they can't refuse?

Los Angeles has won 11 of their last 14 games and there's over a month until the deadline. A lot can change from now until then for the Angels to be clear buyers or clear sellers. Right now they're kind of in the middle of both and it's hard to tell if winning at a high clip is sustainable. Ohtani's been a big part of their wins and has been a great leader in the clubhouse. There are some guys that can't be replicated, can't be replaced because of how unique they are. Ohtani is one of those guys.