A mix of buzz and wonderment follows Shohei Ohtani wherever he goes, waiting for him to unleash a triple-digit fastball or turn around and hit a ball 450 feet — sometimes in the same game.
That could hit another level this year — especially when the Angels’ two-way star arrives in The Bronx on Tuesday for a series against the Yankees — as fans dream about Ohtani picking their team once he becomes a free agent after this season.
A lineup including each of the past two American League MVPs in Ohtani and Aaron Judge?
A rotation with Ohtani and Gerrit Cole?
It’s almost the stuff of fantasy land.
“Oh my gosh,” Nestor Cortes said Sunday when the idea was floated to him.
Of course, it remains to be seen whether Ohtani would actually be interested in leaving the West Coast to play in New York — either for the Yankees or Mets.
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The Yankees didn’t make the second round of talks in 2017 when Ohtani first made the jump from Japan to MLB, and The Post’s Jon Heyman reported that Ohtani told the Yankees he couldn’t envision himself in New York (though people around him have said he is not against it).
Still, the Yankees tried to acquire Ohtani at the trade deadline last summer before the Angels ultimately held onto him, The Post previously reported.
The next time Ohtani is available — barring an Angels collapse before this season’s trade deadline — will be next offseason, when his price tag could potentially eclipse $500 million.
“That would be great for us if we were able to land him,” Cortes said. “But he’s going to be really expensive, so we’ll see how that turns out.”
Cortes admitted it was difficult to gauge what a player like Ohtani might earn on the open market, since there has not been a player like him in today’s game.
Judge — who called Ohtani “by far one of the best players on this planet” after beating him out for the AL MVP last November — just landed $360 million over nine years, but a team would then have to account for Ohtani’s pitching on top of that.
“See what Judge gets and then you gotta see what [Kevin] Gausman or somebody else gets,” Cortes said of the Blue Jays right-hander who signed a five-year, $110 million contract before the 2022 season. “[Ohtani is] a top-five pitcher and he’s a top-five hitter. Pretty crazy.”
The Yankees won’t have to face Ohtani the pitcher this time around, as the right-hander threw a two-inning, rain-shortened start on Monday against the Red Sox.
But Ohtani the hitter is only half of the battle that the Angels currently present, with three-time MVP Mike Trout hitting in front of him.
“It’s a challenge,” manager Aaron Boone said. “Two of the greatest in our sport, right up there on that short list of conversations for best players. It’s always fun to watch those guys compete and go up against the best. But you gotta make sure you execute at a high level.”
That will be the challenge for Cortes on Thursday, when he is scheduled to pitch the series finale against the Angels. The left-hander has had some enjoyable battles with Ohtani, who is 1-for-6 in his career against Cortes.
“It brings out the best in me,” Cortes said. “I know he’s must-watch TV right now, so getting him out is fun.
“It’s incredible. He’s going to pitch [Monday], probably go five to seven innings and then come here and hit [third]. It’s pretty crazy to actually think about recovering the day after you pitch and then go out there and hit [third]. It’s amazing what he does.”