The New York Yankees are headed to their first World Series since 2009. ALCS MVP Giancarlo Stanton is a big reason why. He also shared what was on his mind while celebrating on October 19 in Cleveland: winning a championship and keeping Juan Soto in the Bronx.
MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch caught up with the designated hitter following New York’s Game 5 win over the Guardians. When the topic of Soto came up, Stanton said, “We need him to stay. He’s going to stay. We need to bring it home, and then we’ll bring him home also.”
Stanton took home series MVP honors after slugging four homers and collecting seven RBI for the Yankees. But as great as he was in helping the Yankees punch a ticket to the Fall Classic, Soto was another crucial piece of the puzzle.
The outfielder posted a 1.373 OPS through 23 plate appearances, which included three homers and six RBI. His final homer of the series was a clutch go-ahead three-run shot in the 10th inning of Game 5. It ended up being the difference in the ballgame.
Juan Soto Has Done What the Yankees Hoped He’d Do
Yankees general manager Brian Cashman called the 2023 season a “disaster” for the Yankees. They finished 82-80 and missed the playoffs for the first time since 2016. They acquired Soto via trade with the San Diego Padres last December hoping he’d help bring them back to October.
He’s done just that. New York went 94-68 in the regular season, which led to an American League East division title. Their 117 team wRC+ was the second-best mark in baseball, according to FanGraphs. Aaron Judge led the league with 58 home runs and 144 RBI. However, Soto did plenty of work mostly hitting in front of the right-handed slugger in the lineup throughout the year.
The 25-year-old set new career-high marks in homers (41) and runs scored (128, which also led the league). He also added 109 RBI and 31 doubles with a .288/.419/.569 line.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. Thinks Juan Soto Is Worth $700 Million
How much money should Soto sign for this winter? There have been plenty of projections and predictions over the past few months. ESPN’s Jeff Passan said in August the minimum will be $500 million. Joel Reuter of Bleacher Report thinks bidding will reach the $600 million plateau.
But what does Yankee teammate Jazz Chisholm Jr. think the ultimate number should be? “I think we should re-sign Soto! $700 million! Final offer,” he said during the locker room celebration, via Hoch on X (formerly Twitter).
Soto’s trip to the open market will be fascinating because of his accomplishments at such a young age. Plenty of big market teams will throw their hat in the proverbial ring, with the Yankees and New York Mets seemingly being the favorites. But could the Bombers have the upper hand?
“When you put that jersey on and those pinstripes, it just feels different,” Soto said to NorthJersey.com’s Pete Caldera on October 10. “There’s so much history and everything, so many fans all over the world that we have…it feels really nice to play for a team that has so many big moments in history.”
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