Juan Soto‘s free agency is in full swing.
The superstar slugger’s robust market is beginning to gain clarity as teams put together pitches for one of the most coveted free agents in MLB history.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone confirmed Monday that he will be part of the group that meets with Soto and agent Scott Boras in Southern California, hoping to help compel the right fielder to re-sign after he hit a career-high 41 home runs in his first — and possibly only — season in pinstripes.
The Mets, too, will meet with Soto, with Steve Cohen — MLB’s richest owner with a net worth of $21.3 billion, according to Forbes — wielding an unparalleled financial advantage, should he decide to flex it.
Also helping the Mets recruit Soto is their star shortstop, Francisco Lindor, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan. Lindor, like Soto, is an MVP finalist in his respective league and would reportedly love to see the Mets add another star.
And while the Yankees and Mets are considered the favorites for Soto, the Toronto Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox also scheduled meetings with him, according to ESPN. The Los Angeles Dodgers, meanwhile, reportedly won’t be at the forefront of the frenzy but will remain in the mix should Soto’s anticipated price drop.
Those items represent only some of the buzz swirling around Soto, who is expected to command a contract exceeding $600 million over potentially more than 14 years, per Passan.
Such a financial commitment would be unprecedented, but practically everything about Soto is unprecedented. He hit free agency mere days after turning 26. Through seven MLB seasons, Soto boasts five top-10 MVP finishes, four All-Star selections, a batting title, 201 home runs and a career .421 on-base percentage.
“Juan Soto wants ownership that he knows is going to support an opportunity to win annually,” Boras said last week at the GM Meetings in San Antonio.
“His focus always was, ‘I want to know who my owner is. I want to know that we’re going to be able to win. And I want to know that, besides me, there’s going to be a great number of support on the part of the owner, that he has the same desire to win that I do.’”
Soto finally reaching free agency followed years of speculation, fueled in part by the star turning down a reported 14-year, $440 million extension offer from his original team, the Washington Nationals, in 2022.
The Nationals traded Soto, who helped lead them to a World Series title as a 21-year-old in 2019, to the San Diego Padres, and he spent a season-and-a-half in Southern California.
But when Soto became a year away from free agency, the cash-strapped Padres traded him to the Yankees for a haul last December rather than risk losing him for nothing.
Soto then delivered a season for the ages.
Batting in front of American League MVP favorite Aaron Judge, the lefty-swinging Soto scored an AL-best 128 runs and recorded 109 RBI. His .419 on-base percentage ranked second in the majors, behind only Judge, while his .988 OPS ranked third.
The charismatic Soto connected with Yankees fans, regularly hyping them on his way to right field. Chants of “Re-sign So-to!” became a staple of Yankee Stadium.
Soto remained excellent in the playoffs, most notably hitting a go-ahead three-run home run in ALCS Game 5 in Cleveland that sent the Yankees to their first World Series since 2009.
“The Yankees have open arms to come in and talk to me,” Soto said after the Yankees’ World Series-ending Game 5 loss to the Dodgers. “I don’t have any doors closed. I’m going to keep all of my doors open, and whoever wants to come in and talk, we can have a conversation.”
The free-agent market is expected to revolve around Soto. First baseman Pete Alonso, also a Boras client, could become a middle-of-the-order option for the Yankees should Soto sign elsewhere. The Mets, of course, remain in contention to re-sign Alonso.
Left fielder Teoscar Hernández, who had four RBI for the Dodgers in the World Series, would also be of interest to the Yankees as a possible replacement, according to ESPN, though he reportedly may not wait for Soto to sign.
Soto’s free agency is not expected to linger beyond December, according to Passan.
“I certainly would love to have him back,” Boone said Monday during a Zoom press conference. “I want him in pinstripes moving forward, but you also know there’s going to be a lot of people competing for that, and who knows where it ends up? All I know is that we’ll try and put our best foot forward with it and hope that Juan’s back.”
