Despite the secrecy surrounding it, the end of the Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes appears to be near. And all indications are that the two-time American League MVP will be choosing between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Toronto Blue Jays.
It goes without saying that remaining in Southern California would be a very different experience than the prospect of potentially living in Toronto. But while most might favor the former, one Toronto television host is making an impassioned pitch for the latter.
During Thursday’s episode of Breakfast Television, Sid Seixeiro pleaded with Ohtani to leave sunny SoCal and join him in Canada. In true Seixeiro fashion, the former Tim and Sid host didn’t hold back while responding to former Dodgers utility player Jerry Hairston Jr.’s anti-Toronto pitch.
“In terms of the person you just heard from, Jerry Hairston Jr., he played for nine teams in 16 years. Nobody wanted him on their team. He played for the Dodgers for two years. I know as much about the Dodgers as Jerry Hairston Jr., he’s an absolute joke,” Seixeiro said. “Let’s talk taxes — yeah, we have taxes up in Canada. But California has the fifth-highest taxes out of any state in America. Oh you want to buy a place close to Dodger Stadium? Worst traffic in the world is in Los Angeles. Even if you’re 10 kilometers away, it’s still going to take you eight hours to get to work every day. Weather? Yeah, it’s cold in Canada a little bit. You know what? It also snows in California the last time I checked. And based on what Hollywood has told me, the great earthquake is coming at any point and you don’t want to be around any part of Los Angeles when that happens.”
Seixerio proceeded to point out that the Blue Jays have won more World Series titles than the Dodgers have since 1992 (conveniently leaving out that the Dodgers’ last title came in 2020 and Toronto hasn’t won a World Series since 1993). His best point, however, might have been about having to listen to two national anthems before every game — something Hairston painted as a negative.
“Hearing two national anthems is great,” Seixerio said. “You know why? Because you get to hear the American one and then the better one, which is our national anthem.
“Shohei Ohtani, you know what to do. We love you. We’ll give you your privacy. We’ll give you a competitor. We’ll give you a controlled environment with a dome, it’s renovated. And you’re going to get your $600 million, so I hear. Shohei, come home. We love you. And don’t listen to this a** hat from Los Angeles who doesn’t know what he’s talking about. It’s unbelievable.”
After receiving some pushback from his co-host, Seixerio took back calling Hairston an a** hat.
“It’s too far,” he admitted.
.@sid_seixeiro has a very important message for Shohei Ohtani 👀 pic.twitter.com/fsNLAwLKb5
— Breakfast Television (@breakfasttv) December 7, 2023
Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Hairston — who now works as a broadcaster for the Dodgers-owned SportsNet LA — responded, praising Blue Jays fans for their support of their team, before criticizing Seixeiro for his pronunciation of “Shohei.”
All Love. #LA #Dodgers #Canada pic.twitter.com/QsSdxrycjT
— Jerry Hairston, Jr. (@TheRealJHair) December 8, 2023
It’s a safe bet that this won’t be the last we’ll be hearing from Seixerio on the matter. But with an announcement from Ohtani reportedly expected as early as Friday, we might not have to wait long to find out who will ultimately get the final word.
