In 2012, the A’s shocked all of baseball by coming out of nowhere to scoop up Yoenis Céspedes, that winter’s most intriguing international player.

Could Oakland pull off a similar feat this offseason? This week, the A’s made a formal pitch for 23-year-old Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani, The Chronicle has learned. The Giants, and many other teams, will do so before the weekend. Ohtani’s Japanese team, the Nippon Ham Fighters, is expected to post him immediately after major-league owners formally approve the new posting system Friday afternoon.

Ohtani’s agency, CAA, sent questionnaires to all 30 teams to help the two-way player decide his future home. He will have 21 days to make the decision.

According to a source, the A’s pitch centers on the core of players the team is developing with an eye toward going into a new stadium with a winning club. Oakland’s key youngsters are about Ohtani’s age: first baseman Matt Olson is 23 and third baseman Matt Chapman is 24. Top pitching prospect A.J. Puk is 22. The A’s aim to have a new stadium in 2023; if the team gains the same state waiver that the 49ers and Warriors received in order to expedite the process, the timeline might move up as much as a year and a half.

Oakland also can offer something many teams will not: The A’s are willing to let Ohtani occasionally play in the outfield on days he’s not starting, according to the source. That might resonate with Ohtani, who mostly has been limited to being a designated hitter in Japan after playing 54 games in the outfield as a rookie in 2013.

In addition, Oakland highlighted manager Bob Melvin’s experience. Melvin is a two-time Manager of the Year and he excels with young players. He’s had particularly good relationships with Japanese stars such as Ichiro Suzuki, who played for Melvin in Seattle, and Hideki Matsui in Oakland, as well as longtime friend Hideo Nomo.

The history of the franchise, which is one of the oldest and winningest in the majors, was part of the pitch, along with the West Coast location: a great climate, a cosmopolitan area and shorter flights to Japan. Ohtani’s questionnaire included questions about facilities, which is one area in which the A’s will fall short with the Coliseum. However, the team’s Arizona spring-training complex is among the best.

The Giants, who have scouted Ohtani extensively in Japan, could try to sell him on pitcher-friendly AT&T Park, three World Series wins in five years, the large Japanese-American community in San Francisco and the success their pitchers have achieved.

They also could get Buster Posey, Masanori Murakami and others to help recruit him, by video or in person. Posey belongs to the same agency representing Ohtani. Murakami was the first Japanese player to reach the majors, with the Giants in 1964.

The Giants might have lost points when manager Bruce Bochy said he doubted Ohtani could be a two-way player in the majors, but Bochy reversed himself a day later after watching video of Ohtani hitting.

The A’s and Giants are among the teams that can spend the least on Ohtani based on the current international spending rules. The maximum they can offer as a signing bonus is $300,000, while a handful of clubs can offer $3 million to 3.5 million. The Dodgers, Rangers and Mariners are among the teams considered front-runners to land him.

No one expected Céspedes to sign with the A’s in 2012 — the Cuban slugger inked a four-year, $36 million deal during spring training — and his acquisition kick-started a run of three consecutive postseason appearances for Oakland. Perhaps the A’s can convince Ohtani he’s the piece of the puzzle that could help them do something similar.

Chronicle staff writer Henry Schulman contributed to this story.

Susan Slusser is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: sslusser@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @susanslusser