The New York Yankees made their pitch to Juan Soto and now await his decision.
Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner told ESPN’s Jorge Castillo that the franchise had a “good meeting” with the free agent outfielder who helped lead the team to a World Series appearance this past season.
Soto, an American League MVP finalist, had one of the best years of his career after coming over to the Bronx in a trade with the San Diego Padres. Soto hit 41 home runs, led the AL with 128 runs scored, knocked in 109, and posted a .989 OPS with a 7.9 WAR.
Soto is expected to command a long-term contract in the $600 million range and above. The four-time All-Star could set records for both highest present-day total value and annual average value with his deal.
The Yankees’ main competition to sign Soto is the New York Mets. However, Soto has also met with the Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, and Los Angeles Dodgers, and is planning to meet with the Philadelphia Phillies.
Steinbrenner said he had a “very honest back-and-forth dialogue” with Soto during their meeting.
“Our fans really enjoyed having him in New York,” Steinbrenner said, via ESPN.com. “He’s definitely a significant part of why we got to the World Series. I’ve got ears. I know what’s expected of me. So, look, it’s been a priority. We wouldn’t have gone out to the West Coast if it wasn’t.”
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New York Yankees owner didn’t reveal if offer was made to Juan Soto
When asked, if the Yankees made an offer to Soto during the meeting, Steinbrenner wouldn’t divulge, but did say he told the free agent he would establish a relationship with him, similar to the one he has with Aaron Judge. The owner also wouldn’t say if he was confident the Yankees would be able to re-sign Soto.
“No idea,” Steinbrenner said, giving the same answer when asked if he would meet with Soto again. “We’ll be in the mix. I’ll leave it at that.”
Steinbrenner added that he hasn’t thought about a walk-away number that would cause the Yankees to balk on signing Soto. He did say, though, that consistently carrying a $300 million payroll is untenable. According to FanGraphs, the Yankees’ estimated 2025 payroll is currently at $238 million.
“We’re in a better starting position than we were a year ago. There’s no doubt about that,” Steinbrenner said. “Look, year after year after year after year, payrolls similar to this year and the luxury taxes they produce are not sustainable. That’s the case for the vast majority of owners, maybe all of them. Year after year after year — it doesn’t mean in any given year I can’t do what I want to do. I mean, we’ve got the ability to sign any player we want to sign.”
Soto is expected to make his decision by next month’s winter meetings.
