Shohei Ohtani’s landmark deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers has always stood apart for its sheer scale and structure. The 10-year, $700 million contract is famous for deferring nearly all of its value, leaving the two-way superstar with a modest annual salary while the bulk of the money arrives after his playing days end.
That arrangement has given the Dodgers extraordinary flexibility to surround him with talent and chase championships. Yet Zachary Rotman of FanSided has specified that another less-discussed provision may ultimately prove more disruptive than the deferred payments themselves.
Buried in the agreement is a “key man” clause. It grants Ohtani the right to opt out and become a free agent if either team owner Mark Walter or president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman leaves the organization during the life of the contract.
Friedman’s position appears secure for the foreseeable future. Walter’s situation, however, has grown more complicated in recent days. Rotman notes that Walter is preparing to sell his stake in the Los Angeles Lakers for $12.5 billion to a group that includes Josh Kushner and Bob Iger.
The timing is striking: Walter acquired the basketball franchise less than a year earlier, and his insurance businesses are reportedly under scrutiny by the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
While no criminal charges have been filed and the Lakers sale is not expected to force him out of the Dodgers, the sudden transaction has raised questions about the long-term stability of his baseball holdings.
Ohtani himself explained the thinking behind the clause at his introductory news conference in December 2023. Speaking through an interpreter, he said he viewed the deal as a personal commitment to Walter and Friedman. If either man departed, he worried the organization might lose its shared vision and direction. The clause, he added, was simply a safety net.
None of this means Ohtani is preparing an exit. The Dodgers have won consecutive World Series titles since his arrival, and he has claimed consecutive Most Valuable Player awards. By every public indication he is thriving in Los Angeles.
Even if Walter eventually sold the franchise, the new ownership might prove equally or more aggressive in its spending. Still, the existence of the opt-out creates a latent vulnerability.
A change at the top that once seemed remote now feels slightly less theoretical. Rotman observes that the same uniqueness that allowed the Dodgers to build a dynasty around Ohtani could, under the right circumstances, unravel it far sooner than anyone anticipated.
For the moment the clause remains dormant. Friedman is staying put, and Walter has given no public signal that the Dodgers are for sale.
Yet the rapid Lakers transaction serves as a reminder that ownership landscapes can shift quickly.
Should that shift ever reach Chavez Ravine, Ohtani’s carefully crafted contract would suddenly give him the power to decide whether his marriage to the Dodgers continues or ends.
