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The highlights helped shape Ohtani's season.
Ohtani had an amazing season at the plate and on the mound. Relive some of his highlights. The first part of the story is over.
9:36 AM
A bookmaker in the United States is facing a $1 million loss on a bet that was placed in March.
A William Hill sportsbook in Nevada had a $30,000 bet on Shohei Ohtani to win the American League Most Valuable Player award. Ohtani is one of three players from the Toronto Blue Jays.
William Hill will have suffered a seven-figure loss on an awards market that typically doesn't attract a ton of money if Ohtani wins.
Adam Pullen, assistant director of trading for William Hill, said that it would be the biggest loss on that type of market ever. When you see award betting and a big minus, it's going to stick out as a line item.
Ohtani opened at 60-1 to win the award. It didn't take long for Ohtani to emerge as the consensus Most Valuable Player favorite, as there were more bets on him than any other player.
At the end of June, Ohtani was the odds-on favorite to win the award. He was listed at 5,000 at BetMGM, meaning you would need to bet $5,000 to win $100.
Ohtani hit 46 home runs with 100 RBIs and went 9-2 as a starting pitcher.
A bettor is very much invested in the numbers being enough to win the award. A person placed a $200,000 bet on Ohtani to win the Most Valuable Player. The wager would pay $4,083.
Nevada sportsbooks were not allowed to accept bets on anything that was decided by a vote. The first awards market allowed by Nevada Gaming Control was the Heisman Trophy, and the following year MLB playoffs like the Most Valuable Player and Cy Young were approved. It's been a challenge for the bookmakers to manage the risk of the growing interest in the awards markets.
The general public bets on things. "That's probably the best way to describe it," said Randy Blum, a risk manager for the SuperBook in Las Vegas. "If a guy goes 4-for-4 with three homers, even if he's hitting.210, he's all of a sudden the most valuable player."
The SuperBook is facing a "low five-figure" liability on Ohtani winning the award because of the early interest from sharp bettors who grabbed him early at 30-1. He wouldn't change the way he booked the market.
"We didn't expect him to be that type of hitter," he said.
Pullen was comfortable with how they booked the market.
Pullen said that they don't want to lose, but they should applaud the bettor for putting a big bet on it. We will be open the next day, and it will be a first.
