n the wake of the biggest courting for an international free agent in Major League history, it's ShoTime in Southern California, as two-way Japanese star Shohei Ohtani chose in the end to sign with my beloved Los Angeles Angels. Despite offers from clubs such as the San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Francisco Giants, Texas Rangers, and Chicago Cubs, in the end, the allure of playing alongside the game's best player in Mike Trout with the opportunity to star in a market like Southern California was just too much to pass up.

Heralded as the Japanese Babe Ruth, the 23-year old appeared very unassuming at his introduction outside Angel Stadium of Anaheim, but his play in Japan would suggest anything but. Ohtani was an absolute flamethrower on the mound, with an arsenal that features a 102-MPH fastball that stifled attacks across the country before coming stateside this winter. However, he could arguably be even more talented at the plate, where he was one of the Pacific League's best hitters at the DH spot on days when he wasn't pitching, which could give the Angels a top-of-the-rotation arm and the left-handed power bat they've been searching for in one fell swoop. Angels manager Mike Scioscia was clear in his desire to use Shohei as a two-way player for his debut season in Anaheim, although he will only serve as a DH and not play in the outfield, which he has experience playing in Japan. More than just his on-field ability, however, is the potential he has to change the sport of baseball as the sport's first true two-way superstar. If he can excel as both a pitcher and a hitter, Ohtani has the potential to change the specialized nature of the sport of baseball, all the way down to the youth level.

Ohtani also represents a massive piece in the Angels championship puzzle, as the team signed him for very little money against the luxury tax, and could get an absolute superstar to pair with the burgeoning offensive core of Mike Trout, Justin Upton, Andrelton Simmons, Kole Calhoun, and newly-acquired 4-time All-Star second baseman Ian Kinsler. On the hill, he could contribute to a fierce rotation of Garrett Richards, Andrew Heaney, Matt Shoemaker, and Tyler Skaggs that goes about seven starters deep. Finally, the Angels appear to once again be built to compete for the World Series, and if they can stay healthy, the 2018 edition of the Halos may be the best team since 2009. Additionally, since the financial cost of adding Ohtani was so minimal, Los Angeles may not be done yet, as they could still look to add another free agent piece at either third base, starting pitcher, or both, in the form of Mike Moustakas and Yu Darvish. Either way, Shohei Ohtani is a massive addition to a club that was searching for its path to contention in the Mike Trout era, and is now poised to have a real chance at the Commissioner's Trophy, and Ohtani could be the transcendent star that changes the way baseball is seen.