Juan Soto is the most-wanted man in baseball after the conclusion of the 2024 season, with up to a dozen teams interested in snapping up the New York Yankees free agent.
It is not a matter of if, but how and when Soto cashes in with one of the biggest contracts in sports history as several Major League Baseball teams look to acquire his services.
The incumbent Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets are among 11 teams in pursuit of the 26-year-old, per the New York Post.
Although an exact figure cannot be discussed for what his next contract will be worth, long-term stability and market value will set the price. Expectations are that a deal could near $700million.
Juan Soto is expected to cash in with a huge MLB contract that could run for a dozen years
This also may not be a scenario like Shohei Ohtani’s monster deal with the Dodgers, of which 97 percent is deferred. This will instead be straight cash, maybe with some added incentives.
Big-market teams that can win now are likely to have a better inside track to landing Soto, like the Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays, per The Post.
Some easy teams that can be eliminated from the Soto sweepstakes are the Athletics, White Sox, and Rockies, who are arguably the league’s three-worst teams and all have payrolls outside MLB’s top 10.
Not too many others can be taken out at this early age, with two ‘smaller-market’ teams also among the 11 non-Yankees teams attempting to sign the lefty hitter.
Soto gave a somber interview after the Yankees’ Game 5 loss to the Dodgers that clinched the championship for Los Angeles.
More than 10 teams have already shown an interest in signing Soto since the end of the season
The Yankees are expected to make a competitive offer in a crowded field to retain Soto
‘I’m really happy with the city, with the team, how these guys do, but at the end of the day, we will see,’ he admitted. ‘We’re going to look at every situation, every offer that we get and make a decision from there.
‘I don’t know what are the teams that want to come after me, but definitely, I’ll be open to listen to every single team. I don’t have any doors closed or anything like that. So, I’m going to be available to all 30 teams.’
The outfielder did not say the Yankees had an advantage after he played for them in 2024, but did say he enjoyed his time in the Bronx.
The Yankees not being able to retain Soto would be quite the gut-punch for the franchise that exceedingly underwhelmed during the World Series.
