Paul Skenes just dropped a Shohei Ohtani-sized wink-nudge at Dodgers

There are already plenty of reasons to believe that Paul Skenes will eventually end up a Los Angeles Dodger; chief and most obvious among them is money.

Of course, depending on how Collective Bargaining Agreement negotiations go at the end of this year, the landscape of free agency could change drastically. But if things stay as they are, there will be nothing stopping the Dodgers from plausibly making Skenes the highest-paid pitcher in baseball's history when he becomes a free agent after the 2029 season.

The Dodgers have a couple of other pluses in their corner, though, and Skenes has offered a couple of nods toward the organization already. He's is a southern California native (Fullerton, to be exact). He grew up rooting for the Angels, which he's made no secret of, but he singled out one player in a recent interview with Pitching Ninja (you can probably already tell where we're going with this).

"I've been an Angels fan my whole life. I've definitely modeled Shohei Ohtani as best as I can."

Skenes was only 15 when Ohtani made his debut with the Angels in 2018, so it makes sense that he would've been as invested in Ohtani-mania as every other aspiring major leaguer. But Skenes is the one who will actually have the opportunity to share a team with him.

Paul Skenes says he modeled his game after Shohei Ohtani in recent interview

There's no question as to whether or not the Dodgers will be in on Skenes when he hits free agency, even if the rotation is ostensibly full, just like there's no question that the Dodgers will be in on Tarik Skubal at the end of this season, even though the rotation is full. Both are going to have their pick of the litter.

Skenes is so good that the Mets, Blue Jays, and Phillies might all be willing to go higher and higher and higher for him — which the latter two were unwilling to do for Kyle Tucker. But the Dodgers have Shohei Ohtani.

And, sorry to Angels fans, there's simply no way that Paul Skenes ends up in Anaheim. Even if Arte Moreno was willing to get in on the bidding, why would Skenes want to trade one losing organization for another, if a winning one will give him a comparable salary?

The Pirates still have time to try to extend Skenes, of course, but he's arguably already risen beyond their financial capability. Even four seasons away from his free agency, the Dodgers already look like the clear frontrunners.