The MLB offsesaon officially began after the Los Angeles Dodgers defeated the New York Yankees in Game 5 of the World Series. With that, free agency is set to begin, and there is no disputing that the top player available is Yankees outfielder Juan Soto.
Soto's free agency has been the topic of discussion for quite some time, dating back to when he was with the Washington Nationals. Soto turned down a 15-year, $440 million contract in 2022, as his plan was always to hit free agency after the 2024 season. While the Yankees are hoping that his one-season stay and trip to the World Series would convince him to stay on. The thing is, Soto is going to listen to all interested teams, and he's looking at an extremely lucrative contract.
According to New York Post MLB insider Jon Heyman, Soto's new "magic number" is thought to be $700 million. While that would be similar to what Shohei Ohtani signed for with the Dodgers, Heyman suggests that Soto's deal won't be heavily deferred like the Dodgers' two-way superstar.
"Top free agent hitter Juan Soto’s new magic number is thought to be $700M (or more) — and that’s a solid $700M, not the record $700M contract that’s 97 percent deferred that Japanese superstar Shohei Ohtani received from the Dodgers," writes Heyman.
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Last winter, Ohtani announced that he would be signing with the Dodgers. The reports following his announcement revealed that he had signed a 10-year, $700 million deal. However, $680 million of that total money would be deferred to 2034 until 2043. This move allowed the Dodgers to make a bevy of moves to build a contender. That paid off in Ohtani's first year, as they won the World Series.
Soto has already heard from interested teams. 11 to be exact. The sweepstakes will be much more vast than Ohtani's last winter.
Soto is already linked to the Toronto Blue Jays, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, and even the Dodgers. While the Yankees have shown they are willing to pay top free agents big money, team owner Hal Steinbrenner expressed concern about a high payroll.
Thus far, the favorites are believed to be the Yankees and Mets for Soto. The Mets pose the biggest threat to the Yankees, as team owner Steve Cohen has unlimited funds to spend. Not to mention, the Mets have shown they can be World Series contenders after falling just two games short of the Fall Classic.
This past regular season, Soto recorded a .288 batting average, a .419 on-base percentage, a .569 slugging percentage, 41 home runs, 109 RBI, 128 runs scored, and 166 hits in 576 at-bats. In the postseason, Soto slashed .327/.469/.633 while posting four home runs, nine RBI, 12 runs scored, 16 hits, 14 walks and nine strikeouts in 49 at-bats.
Soto is the kind of player that will make any team he's on instantly better. But for those interested organizations, you will have to pay up.
