On the surface, it would appear that Shohei Ohtani’s choice of teams he might join may have something to do with the time shift:
The seven teams that will meet Ohtani, confirmed to The Athletic from sources: #Dodgers; #Angels; #Padres; #Mariners; #SFGiants; #Rangers; #Cubs. Every other club is out.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 4, 2017
Most of those are west coast teams, and a couple are in the central time zone. During daylight savings time, which now encompasses the entire baseball season, night games on the east coast would be on the air at 8 AM in Japan. (All times here assume a 7 PM local start time.) Central games hit the airwaves at 9 AM in Japan, while west coast games would begin at 11 AM in Japan. If Ohtani plays on the west coast, many people in Japan could watch during their lunch break. That would maximize his exposure in his home country, and also bring the team that signs him an advertising boon. That would be nice to take into free agent negotiations.
Gaslamp Ball believes the Padres have the inside track. San Diego has a working relationship with the Fighters, and employ a number of former Japanese players.
from baseballmusings.com http://ift.tt/2AV9Q1e
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