For Blue Jays owner Rogers, signing Shohei Ohtani is about more than just baseball

The Toronto Blue Jays are reportedly one of the last teams still in the running to sign baseball's superstar Shohei Ohtani. Baseball insiders say it will take between $500-$600 million to land the Japanese phenom.

But for Rogers Communications, the company that owns the team, this isn't just about baseball. They want Ohtani to come to Toronto to help sell ads and cellphones, not just jerseys and Jays tickets.

"The halo effect for the Rogers corporation would be very, very real," said Adam Seaborn, a sports media analyst and the head of partnerships at Playmaker Capital.

It can be hard to describe Ohtani's level of fame. He's probably the best two-way player in the history of the game — he pitches and serves as a designated hitter. 

He has an enormous following around the world, and fans fly in from as far away as Japan to watch his games. About 50 Japanese media members are credentialed to cover Ohtani on a full-time basis.

A study by a well-known Japanese economist found Ohtani's broad economic impact as a member of the Los Angeles Angels was around $337 million US in the 2022 season alone.

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"He is frequently referred to in the press as a unicorn, as if he were singular," Major League Baseball historian John Thorn told the CBC Radio program The Current over the summer. "But unicorn simply means one horn and is an imaginary beast. Ohtani comes as close to an imaginary beast as we have ever had in baseball."

Experts say bringing in someone like "Shotime" Ohtani would have an immediate impact on the many business lines that Rogers has that have nothing to do with baseball.

It would help their TV properties because games would draw much bigger audiences.