Juan Soto's free agency is inevitable, and that's not a bad thing for the Yankees
Juan Soto looks on prior to a game between the Padres and the Astros at Minute Maid Park on Sept. 9, 2023 in Houston. Credit: Getty Images
The two enduring images from Tuesday’s Zoom call with Juan Soto perfectly illustrated the conflicting emotions surrounding his trade to the Bronx.
The first was Soto sporting a Yankees’ cap for his virtual introduction, driving home that, yes, last week’s blockbuster deal for the 25-year-old hitting prodigy was indeed a reality. And Soto, now on his third team in three years, seemed genuinely thrilled to be wearing the iconic hat.
“It’s just a different feeling,” Soto said, smiling.
As for the second, that featured his agent Scott Boras, who had his own box on the Zoom screen, like a member of the Brady Bunch or a celebrity on Hollywood Squares, but appeared only as a silent observer. Not that it mattered. For once, Boras didn’t have to say a thing. His client was well-schooled on the correct script when questions about a potential Yankees’ extension inevitably popped up.
Regarding that topic, I asked Soto if it would be difficult to keep all that stuff out of his head during this upcoming contract year, especially since the conversation already had begun. And the noise only gets louder from here.
“I’ve been doing it for six years,” Soto said. “So I think it’s not going to be that hard because I have one of the best agents in the league. I put everything on him and let him do his magic. For me, my mindset is just come here to play baseball and try to win a championship.”
As we all know, that Boras magic tends to work best in the offseason, on the open market, when his sorcery can take full advantage of redemption-seeking billionaires jockeying for All-Stars and the forever lurking “mystery teams.” Boras’ wizardry isn’t quite as potent during the summer months, when players are still under contract. Same team extensions too often can feel like money left on the table.
And if it wasn’t already crystal clear, Soto is very much a Boras kind of guy. It’s great that a handful of high-profile Yankees lined up to call Soto after the trade, and I’m sure they’ll do whatever they can to keep him happy during this six-month stay in the Bronx (ideally seven, with a deep October run). But no one should be under any illusions that the Yankees can make any headway towards re-signing Soto until Hal Steinbrenner opens his checkbook next December.
The good news, from a Yankees’ standpoint, is that it works both ways. With Soto wanting to take his shot in free agency, he’s best served to come up with a big finishing kick for the Boras binder. Soto can say he’s not thinking about a $500-plus million contract waiting for him next winter, but no one is wired like that, especially a player that chooses Boras as his agent.
Fortunately for Soto, this trade got him to the right place. Wherever he winds up hitting, Aaron Judge will be either in front or behind Soto, creating one of MLB’s most dangerous duos. By season’s end, the numbers are going to be there, and this is a career .284 hitter who averages 30 homers with a .946 OPS.
Figure those stats to spike in his walk year, further boosted by Yankee Stadium’s short porch in rightfield. Even with Soto being more of a left-center slugger, it definitely can’t hurt to have a shorter fence for his misses to vault over. And based on a very small sample size, Soto already seems to enjoy hitting there, with four homers and a 1.219 OPS in seven Bronx games.
“It’s a great ballpark, it’s a great batter’s box,” Soto said. “It feels great to stand out there. It’s just the way it goes. I got the chance to get really good pitches in the strike zone and do damage.”
Anyone hoping to glean some insight into Soto’s long-term strategy came away from Tuesday’s Zoom chat disappointed. Other than the NY cap, it was a mostly generic conversation, with Soto pushing the right buttons when it came to buzzwords like “winning” and “championships.”
Not that there’s anything wrong with that. The trade for Soto is the start of what the Yankees hope to be a mutually-beneficial relationship, even with divorce the likely outcome by summer’s end (perhaps with a reconciliation to follow). Suggesting that Soto is taking a mercenary approach to donning the pinstripes is not a bad thing for the Yankees. They’re desperate to reach October this season, to get back to a World Series for the first time in 14 years. Soto is a means to that end -- at this stage, nothing more. Neither side is pretending otherwise, and both should be fine with it.
“Right now, we’re focused on the here and now,” GM Brian Cashman said when discussing the trade last week. “We’re just very proud of the fact that we can call him a Yankee at this time.”
Soto sounds legit excited to be a Yankee, too. Probably not as much as being a free agent, though.
David Lennon is an award-winning columnist, a voter for baseball's Hall of Fame and has covered six no-hitters, including two perfect games.
