An underlying tone to the 2017 MLB season was whether or not the Nippon-Ham Fighters would move forward with posting Shohei Ohtani. Although making the jump stateside at 23 years old would limit how lucrative of a contract he could sign, Ohtani made it clear he wished to do so.
The Fighters eventually honored his request, and Ohtani was officially posted last December. Prior to that point, he sent out a questionnaire to all 30 MLB teams, requesting info on how he would be utilized and details on an organization’s facilities, among other areas.
It was used for Ohtani to have a field of finalists that he would meet with upon being posted.