Juan Soto to suitors: Let the free agent sweepstakes begin!
Yankees outfielder Juan Soto (22) exits the dugout as the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrate winning the World Series in Game 5 on Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024 at Yankee Stadium. Credit: Newsday/J. Conrad Williams Jr.
Welcome to the winter of Juan Soto.
With a World Series-clinching loss to the Dodgers, 7-6, in Game 5 on Wednesday night, the Yankees fell short of their ultimate goal of winning it all in their only guaranteed season with Soto, the superstar outfielder acquired from the Padres last offseason.
Up next for the Yankees: Trying to convince Soto to come back on a contract that may well exceed a half-billion dollars.
Up next for Soto: Considering such offers from — potentially — several teams.
“It’s going to be exciting. It’s going to be a good experience,” Soto said early Thursday morning in the Yankees’ clubhouse. “I feel like every team has the same opportunity when I’m going to free agency. I don’t want to say anybody has any advantage, because at the end of the day, we’re going to look at what they have and how much they want me.”
Soto is positioned as the most prized free agent in a class that includes pitchers Corbin Burnes of the Orioles and Blake Snell of the Giants, Astros third baseman Alex Bregman, Mets first baseman Pete Alonso and Brewers shortstop Willy Adames.
Given his age (an extremely-young-for-free-agency 26) and level of success already (an early Hall of Fame track that includes proving himself in the postseason and in New York), teams at a certain threshold of financial might will be unusually motivated to sign him. He likely will land the second-largest contract in baseball history, behind only Shohei Ohtani’s 10-year, $700 million deal with the Dodgers last offseason.
The Yankees, of course, will be involved. A liberal list of other possible suitors: the Mets, whose president of baseball operations, David Stearns, said last week that “pretty much the entirety of the player universe is potentially accessible to us”; the Giants, who have been trying to add an elite hitter for the better part of a decade; the Blue Jays, who attempted to sign Ohtani last offseason; and the Orioles, who are newly owned by billionaire David Rubenstein.
And one can never rule out the Dodgers trying to go big again, even after capturing their second World Series championship in five years. Soto’s former team, the Nationals, who appear poised to emerge from a rebuild kick-started by their trade of Soto in 2022, loom as a would-be-fun dark horse.
“Definitely I’ll be open to every single team,” Soto said. “I don’t have any doors closed or anything like that. I’m going to be available for all 30 teams.”
Still dressed from head (hat) to toe (flip flops) in Yankee garb, Soto spoke like a ballplayer-turned-businessman, represented by Scott Boras, who also counts several of the other names above as clients. He chose his words carefully so as to not risk losing any negotiating leverage.
Is the perception that he’d rather stay in New York correct? “I don’t think so,” Soto said, noting that he was “really happy” with the city but open-minded.
Does he expect the Mets to pursue him? Soto chuckled and said: “I don’t know what teams want to come after me.”
What will he value most (besides money)?
“Everybody wants to be on a winning team,” he said. “That’s one of the biggest things you look to. You want to be part of this. Even if you don’t make it as the last team standing, you want to be part of it, you want to be involved. That’s one of the biggest things I’m looking for.”
Soto’s teammates, naturally, want him back.
“He got a little taste of the excitement here, the history here, what it truly means to be a Yankee,” Aaron Judge said. “This guy has no fear. He wants to be a leader. He wants to be in the spotlight. He wants to have those big moments. When you’re a Yankee, you’re going to be put in those situations. So I’d love to have him back, but we’ll give him some time to think about, do what he needs to do with his family and see what happens.”
Giancarlo Stanton said of his parting message to Soto: “Stay with us.”
The Yankees are, of course, the incumbent. Soto described them as “one of the teams that I’m going to try to be with.” He just enjoyed the best year of his career: 41 home runs and 109 RBIs to go with a .288 average and .989 OPS.
“This is going to stay in my heart the rest of my life, this group of guys,” Soto said. “This year was really special for me. Definitely I’m really proud of myself, of what I accomplished, really thanks to Judge. He was a big part of it. But definitely how much work I put in in the offseason and how I came prepared this year. I was really happy with that.”
Yankees fans made known their desire for Soto to stay via frequent chants throughout recent months.
Might that influence Soto’s decision?
“It’ll probably impact the decision of ownership,” he said with a big smile. “We’ll see how it goes.”
Tim Healey is the Mets beat writer for Newsday. Born on Long Island and raised in Connecticut, Tim has previously worked for the South Florida Sun Sentinel, the Boston Globe and MLB.com. He is also the author of “Hometown Hardball,” a book about minor league baseball in the northeast.
