The Yankees knew they only had one guaranteed season with Juan Soto when they traded for him this offseason, and it paid off in a lot of ways for both parties.
New York made it back to the World Series for the first time in 15 years and Soto, arguably, had his best season offensively. He’s ingratiated with the city and team but at just 26 years old, the outfielder is set to headline one of the biggest free agencies in MLB history.
Speaking after the Yankees’ Game 5 loss to the Dodgers in the 2024 World Series, Soto was asked if Wednesday was his last game in pinstripes.
“You don’t know. At the end of the day we’ll see where we’re at,” he said. “It’s a tough game to be my last one. I’m glad with what we accomplished as a team and we wanted to be one of the last teams standing but we’ll see where we’re at [in free agency].”
Soto went 1-for-2 with three walks in the deciding Game 5, capping off a great postseason in his first year in The Bronx. Across 14 games this October, Soto hit .327 with four home runs and nine RBI.
He made some memorable moments — especially his series-clinching homer in the ALCS — with the Yankees but unsurprisingly he’s not showing his cards as to where he wants to sign this offseason.
Soto said he was happy in his time in the city and with the 2024 Yankees but he and his agent Scott Boras are going to “look at every situation and offer we get.”
What the offer looks like could be upwards of $600 million, but that depends on the teams bidding for his services. And when it comes to teams, Soto is open to hear from all of them.
“I don’t have any doors closed,” Soto said. “I’ll be available for all 30 teams.”
He later added, “Every team has the same opportunity when I go to free agency. I won’t say any team has an advantage.”
But will it be difficult to leave this Yankees team after getting to the World Series?
“Leaving any place that’s a winning team is always hard,” Soto answered. “This team was really special it’s been a blast for me. I’ve been really happy. If I’m here or not, I will be happy for the teammates that I got to know. This is a really special group.
“They just wished me the best of luck and made sure I do the best for me and my family. These guys were special and I’m really happy to play with them”
That includes Aaron Judge who with Soto formed one of the best duos in baseball history. Hitting in front of Judge allowed Soto to slash .288/.419/.988 with a career-high 41 home runs.
“I’m happy with what we did as a duo and teammates this year. It’s incredible,” Soto said of Judge. “Out on the field, in the clubhouse how he manages himself. I was really happy and learned a lot of things from him. I’m going to take that to my next step.”
“He brought us a lot of joy. I think we brought him a lot of joy, as well,” Judge said of his teammate. “We were lucky to have him for this year.”
“Just an absolute privilege. A great a player…he was that good of a person with us,” manager Aaron Boone said of Soto. “He was just so easy to manage. Somebody that I have a lot of admiration and respect for. Hope he’s here forever but I’m excited for him and what the next few months are for him. From my standpoint, I couldn’t ask for better.”
Although Soto said he’ll speak to all 30 teams, he does have one criteria for his next stop and it’s something the baseball world saw when Shohei Ohtani became a free agent last year.
“Everybody wants to be on a winning team. That’s one of the biggest things you look to,” Soto said. “Even if you don’t make it as the last team standing, you want to be involved in all this, that’s one of the biggest things I’m looking for.”
The start of MLB free agency begins five days after the World Series concludes. So the Juan Soto sweepstakes will officially begin early next week.
