Cody Snavely
With the Major League Baseball offseason rolling along, entering the final weeks of November, multiple free agents and their representatives are meeting with teams and gaging their market—however, the biggest prize this offseason is 26-year-old outfielder Juan Soto.
Soto is one of the most accomplished hitters of his generation. He is a four-time all-star, five-time Silver Slugger, 2022 Home Run Derby champion, 2020 National League Batting Title winner, and 2019 World Series Champion, and he is finally on the open market.
Soto started his career with the Washington Nationals until he was traded twice in three years. He then split time for one and a half seasons with the San Diego Padres and this past season with the New York Yankees.
In his first season as a Yankee, Soto had a career year hitting .288/.419/.569 with a .989 OPS, 178 OPS+, forty-one home runs, 109 RBIs, and an astounding 129 walks.
Due to his age and performance, Soto is set to receive an enormous payday. Multiple insiders predict that the 26-year-old will get a contract north of $600 million over the span of ten-plus years.
With that amount of money and years on the table, only a few select teams can likely afford his services. Throughout the last two weeks, multiple teams have met with Soto and his camp.
The New York Yankees would love to retain their 2024 all-star, who helped them reach the Fall Classic for the first time since 2009. The New York Mets, fresh off a surprising National League Championship appearance, would love to take the next step and have the deepest pockets under owner Steven A. Cohen.
The Tampa Bay Rays, Boston Red Sox, and Toronto Blue Jays are the other big teams that have met with modern-day Ted Williams. However, the next team to meet with Soto is the Los Angeles Dodgers.
According to Major League Baseball insider Mark Feinsand, the Dodgers are the next team set to meet with Juan Soto this week, possibly as early as Tuesday.
The Dodgers, led by President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman and General Manager Brandon Gomes, look to continue improving their roster even after winning it all this past season. And despite spending well over one billion dollars last offseason, they seem prepared to continue that trend with Soto.
It remains to be seen how interested the Dodgers truly are with conflicting reports coming out, such as ESPN insider Jeff Passan, who reported in his latest column that the Dodgers would only be serious suitors for Soto if his market were for a shorter-term high AAV deal.
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