The Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes took a tumultuous turn as multiple reports suggested he was flying north of the border to sign with the Toronto Blue Jays, which not only were false but wound up entangling Robert Herjavec of “Shark Tank” lore.
Nearly 20,000 fan tracked what they believed was Ohtani’s flight from John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, California, to Canada. However, when the plane landed, the 29-year-old was nowhere in sight.
Instead, it was Herjavec who emerged onto the tarmac at Toronto Pearson Airport, to the disappointment of Blue Jays fans everywhere.
Herjavec was quickly approached by an eager Canadian border control official who asked him if Ohtani had arrived, via Jared Diamond of The Wall Street Journal:
“Is he here?” one of them said, excitedly.
“Who?” a confused Herjavec asked.
“Ohtani!” the officer responded.
Herjavec said the Canadian border control officials were let down when he revealed Ohtani wasn’t on the flight:
“They didn’t even look at my passport,” Herjavec said. “They were so disappointed about who was on the plane. They’re like, ‘Oh, welcome home sir,’ and that was it.”
Herjavec joked that his popularity pales in comparison to Ohtani after his initial confusion about what was happening:
“I land, and there’s reporters, crowds, police, helicopters, and I’m like, ‘What the hell is going on?’” Herjavec said. “I’m a little disappointed that ‘Shark Tank’ doesn’t inspire that level of fanfare.”
Although Ohtani previously met with Blue Jays officials at the team’s Spring Training facility in Dunedin, Florida, he never flew to Toronto.
The two-way star remained in Southern California and ultimately signed a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The deal is the largest professional sports history, but comes with unprecedented deferrals that will allow the Dodgers to consistently build a competitive team.
Who is Robert Herjavec?
Herjavec is a Canadian businessman who has invested in several companies, both through ABC’s Emmy-Award winning show “Shark Tank” and on a more private level.
Herjavec founded BRAK Systems, a Canadian integrator of Internet security software, and sold it in 2000 to AT&T Canada for $30.2 million.
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