What was expected to be the largest contract in U.S. pro team sports history has taken a troubling and uncertain turn.

Los Angeles Angels two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani, who will hit free agency this offseason, tore the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow on Wednesday — and will not pitch again this season. 

Arguably the most anticipated free agent in baseball history, Ohtani now potentially faces a second Tommy John surgery, a move that could remove hundreds of millions of dollars from a contract previously projected to reach as high as $600 million.

“A tough day for him. Tough day for all of us,” said Angels GM Perry Minasian.

Late last month, the Angels opted to “roll the dice” at the trade deadline and keep Ohtani — a near-lock to earn his second MVP award — in the hopes of earning their first playoff berth since 2014. But that decision has yielded disastrous results, including a 5-16 post-deadline record that has left the team well out of contention and injuries to superstars Ohtani and Mike Trout.

Franchise Uncertainty

The Ohtani news also extends a long run of turbulence for the Angels, who under Arte Moreno have been continually beset with ownership and stadium issues. 

Despite playing in the country’s second-largest media market with two generational talents and attendance totals and payrolls regularly ranking in MLB’s top 10, the Angels are tied with Detroit for the league’s longest playoff drought, have employed four different GMs and four field managers since 2011, and have been increasingly known for organizational instability.

“It’s been a decade of disaster,” a team staffer told ESPN.

After weeks of stalled progress, the ACC could finally be ready to jump aboard the expansion train — with some specific details being discussed.

Stanford, California, and Southern Methodist University are now close to joining the ACC, according to multiple reports. The new schools would reportedly accept smaller shares of revenue distribution than the ACC’s current members, and ESPN could increase its $240 million annual media rights fee by as much as $72 million, according to Yahoo Sports. 

Out of that new money, Cal and Stanford would accept about $7 million to $10 million annually, SMU would get nothing, and the rest would go into a pot for rewarding schools under the ACC’s new performance-based distribution model.

That would be akin to Oregon and Washington accepting smaller revenue payments to join the Big Ten — although those are still reported to be around $30 million per year.

ACC athletic directors are scheduled to meet Thursday night, and any official vote would require approval from 12 of the 15 university presidents (including Notre Dame, which is not a full-time member). Clemson, Florida State, North Carolina, and NC State have been opposed to expansion so far — so it could likely be up to those four schools to decide if the extra money from ESPN would be enough to change their minds.

A source told Front Office Sports that the ACC is hoping to have a decision on expansion by the start of Week 1 games next week.

Lionel Messi has already made a drastic impact on American soccer, but he still has a key debut ahead.

After eight games in the Leagues Cup and U.S. Open Cup competition, Messi will play in his first regular-season MLS tilt on Saturday night when Inter Miami visits the New York Red Bulls.

It’s expected to bring in two-to-three times the revenue of an average match, Red Bulls president and GM Marc de Grandpré told Front Office Sports. “It’s our largest-ever MLS gate since we’ve been at Red Bull Arena,” de Grandpré said.

The match’s timing involved some luck — the Leagues Cup run delayed a Miami home game — and strategic planning. “The process started when we heard he may be coming — last December, those rumors were rumbling,” de Grandpré explained. “So we worked with the league to make sure that our home match against Miami would be in the latter half of our season.”

What Could Have Been

In future seasons, the Red Bulls could host Messi in MetLife Stadium, which boasts a capacity of 82,500, compared to Red Bull Arena’s 25,000. “This year, it couldn’t work out because the Jets and Giants are playing Saturday,” said de Grandpré. “But it’s certainly something that’s on the table as we look forward.”

Inter Miami has yet to lose with Messi — something de Grandpré sees as a good challenge for MLS. “I also believe that it pushes everyone across the league to elevate their standard,” he said. “We have to make sure that we keep developing our product on the pitch — make it more competitive, not only within the Americas but globally.”

Editor’s Note: You can hear more from de Grandpré about hosting Messi on Friday’s episode of the Front Office Sports Today podcast. Check here for the latest episodes.