Ben Verlander Shohei Ohtani Dodgers Jackie Robinson Screen grab: MLB on Fox
FoxMLBBy Ben Axelrod on

Throughout their storied history, the Dodgers have made several high impact acquisitions. It would be tough to argue, however, that any has been more noteworthy than the 1946 signing of Jackie Robinson, which resulted in the second baseman breaking Major League Baseball’s color barrier.

Nevertheless, that’s exactly the case that Fox Sports’ Ben Verlander attempted to make. Breaking down the impact of Los Angeles’ blockbuster signing of Shohei Ohtani, the younger brother of 3-time Cy Young Award winner Justin Verlander proclaimed the acquisition of the 2-time MVP “the most important signing in Dodgers history.”

“This means everything. It’s the most important signing in Dodgers history. I have no problem saying that,” Verlander said during Tuesday’s episode of Flippin’ Bats. “It’s the most important, it’s the biggest. I think it will be the most impactful and it’s already impactful. Not on-the-field, but odds-wise, the Dodgers are now the odds-on favorite to win the World Series. They signed Shohei and guess what? That comes along with the territory. You’re now the favorites to win.”

While one could certainly argue that Ohtani is the best player the Dodgers have ever acquired, the idea of any signing being more important than Robinson is, frankly, absurd. Not only was Robinson a Hall of Fame player, but his signing was significant for not just the Dodgers, but all of baseball, as well as sports and society at large.

It’s also worth noting that the bulk of Verlander’s point wasn’t about Ohtani’s on-field impact, but rather the historical significance of the Dodgers signing him. From that standpoint, there’s no debating Robinson’s place as the most important signing in not just Dodgers history, but baseball history.

Perhaps Verlander simply forgot about Robinson (although he did reference Babe Ruth in the same segment). Or maybe he was making an unspoken distinction between the Dodgers’ time in Brooklyn and Los Angeles. Regardless of the reason for his omission, many were quick to point out the absurdity of his statement.

https://twitter.com/David_Haney11/status/1737311823919996952

[MLB on Fox]

About Ben Axelrod

Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.

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