Bill Plaschke has crazy take on Shohei Ohtani's situation with Dodgers in wake of Mark Walter drama

Concern over the Los Angeles Dodgers' future in the wake of two federal investigations into owner Mark Walter's financials isn't unwarranted, but infamous LA Times columnist Bill Plaschke took it a step too far (as he is often known to do).

He wrote of a theoretical Dodgers sale: "If Walter sells the team, they could possibly lose their two MVPs — [Andrew] Friedman and [Shohei] Ohtani. Unless the new owners give Friedman a piece of the team, he could set off to build another dynasty elsewhere. And Ohtani has a clause famously included in his contract that allows him to leave if either Friedman or Walter leaves. If Walter goes, Ohtani could demand a new contract with terms that a new cash-strapped owner cannot afford."

That's a slippery slope fallacy if there ever was one. A lot of things would have to go exactly the way Plaschke laid out for Ohtani — or even Friedman — to leave the Dodgers (which Ohtani already said he has no plans to do, even if Walter sells the team).

While, yes, concern is valid and team president Stan Kasten's defensive rebuttals to questions of a Dodgers sale are not reassuring, Plaschke's take is just far too mired in "what if"s that it reads like the rant of a paranoiac trying to cover for every possible outcome.

Is there an actual risk of Shohei Ohtani leaving the Dodgers if Mark Walter sells the team?

The idea that the Dodgers might be sold to anyone "cash-strapped" is inherently flawed. A sale of the Dodgers would be absolutely colossal; not just anyone is going to be able to afford them. A few names have already been thrown out, some purely speculative, but regardless — anyone who can even dream of owning the Dodgers is a multibillionaire.

And that multibillionaire will know about the amount of deferred money and have to account for it. The last thing any new owner would want to do right after buying the team, and while trying to endear a fanbase to them, would be to lose Ohtani.

Besides, the Dodgers' dedicated fund for deferred payments is accounted for. Per Melody Gutierrez and Brittany Ghiroli, "The Dodgers' deferred payments are in one account, according to industry sources, and while it's plausible they are in an insurance fund, MLB has rules governing how liquid those accounts must be."

While the mammoth level of spending the Dodgers have engaged in since Walter took over in 2012 might not be totally replicable under a new owner, that new owner will absolutely have to know what they're getting into.

Try again, Plaschke.

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