Juan Soto is inarguably the top baseball free agent this offseason, even if Roki Sasaki steals a lot of his hype during the winter months.
At just 26 years of age, Soto has a career OPS of .953, possesses a World Series ring (from 2019 with the Washington Nationals), and is coming off a campaign in which he earned his fourth consecutive All-Star appearance. He's a multi-time MVP in the making, and some team is going to handsomely reward him for his production and talents at some point this offseason.
Most pundits and fans have expected that three teams will emerge as the favorites in the Soto sweepstakes: the World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, the incumbent New York Yankees, and the budget-less New York Mets. Given his expected asking price—assumed to be in the neighborhood of $600 million—and desire to play with a championship contender for the next decade-plus, it seemed fitting that the three wealthiest teams, who all appeared in the LCS in 2024, would compete to sign the right fielder.
However, a wrinkle has been tossed into the mix in the early going, as Soto reportedly took meetings with the Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays over the past week. What's more: Soto left both meetings impressed, particularly with the Yankees' top rival.
Hear at least Jays and Red Sox owners made impressive in-person presentations to Juan Soto, but multiple team owners are yet to present and will do so in coming days.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) November 16, 2024
Now, all of this could simply be public posturing. It'd be one thing for the Yankees to lose Soto in free agency, but if they found themselves outbid by the hated Red Sox and had to play Soto in Boston for the next 12 or so years, it would create a level of tension rarely seen inside the "Evil Empire". By throwing Boston and Toronto into the mix, perhaps Soto's camp can open the Yankees' pocketbook a little wider.
Or, Soto could actually be considering all his options in free agency. The Blue Jays were in the running for Shohei Ohtani just last year, even if they ultimately fell short to the Dodgers, And the Red Sox, who are one of just nine teams in MLB history to hand out a contract in excess of $300 million (Rafael Devers, ten years, $313.5 million), have a gaping hole in the outfield next to Jarren Durran that Soto could very easily fill.
ESPN's Jeff Passan has reported that the Yankees and Mets also have meetings booked with Soto. Notably, the Dodgers haven't been mentioned in any official news, nor have the Chicago Cubs, who have often been cited as a dark horse in the race. It's obviously still early, but it would appear that Soto is prioritizing teams on the East Coast for now.
The MLB offseason remains in its nascent stages, and no one should expect any blockbuster moves ahead of the Winter Meetings, starting on December 9. The Dodgers have plenty of time to book a meeting with Soto before then, as does Soto's party to parse through the list of available suitors.
Just don't count out a few of the Yankees' division rivals in the sweepstakes for the best hitter in baseball.