The New York Yankees have a plan in place should they lose Juan Soto in free agency.
The Yankees’ top plan in the offseason is to bring back Soto. But, with the New York Mets also trying to land him, MLB insider Mark Feinsand of MLB.com says if Soto doesn’t re-sign with the Yankees, he expects the team to pursue Christian Walker, Alex Bregman, and reliever Tanner Scott with the money that would have gone to Soot.
“I, too, would expect Soto/Walker/Reliever (Scott?) to be Plan A for the Yankees. But if Soto signs elsewhere, that would open up some money to spend for sure,” Feinsand wrote in his Reddit AMA. “I could see the Yankees then going for Walker/Bregman/Scott and possibly a starting pitcher, because as Brian Cashman loves to say, you can never have too much pitching. Either way, it’s going to be a fascinating offseason for the Yankees as they look to return to the World Series in 2025.”
Walker and Bregman would become the Yankees’ starting first and third baseman who can help replace the offense from Soto. As well, New York would be able to get one of the top relievers in free agency with the extra money from not re-signing Soto.
Soto hit .288 with 41 home runs and 109 RBIs in 157 games with the Yankees.
Insider Expects Soto to Sign With Yankees or Mets
Soto is the top free agent available and several teams have shown interest in the star outfielder.
Scott Boras the agent of Soto has meetings set up next week with several MLB teams. However, Feinsand expects Soto to either sign with the Mets or Yankees.
“I would be surprised if Soto doesn’t sign by the end of the Winter Meetings,” Feinsand wrote in his AMA. “He’s going to start meeting with teams soon, and once he has an idea of which ones he likes most, the offers should start coming in. Unlike some of his top free agents last year (Snell, Chapman, Bellinger), agent Scott Boras isn’t going to have trouble drumming up big offers for Soto.
“I still think this will ultimately be a two-horse race between the Yankees and Mets, and to be honest, I have no idea which one I think is the favorite,” Feinsand added. “Soto liked his time with the Yankees, but if the Mets decide they won’t be out-bid for Soto, it’s tough to imagine Hal Steinbrenner getting into a big-time bidding war with Steve Cohen.”
Soto is projected to get a 13-year $600 million deal by MLBTradeRumors.
Yankees Will Put Best Foot Forward to Sign Soto
New York’s main goal in the offseason is to re-sign Soto.
The Yankees traded for the star outfielder last offseason in hopes of keeping him. General manager Brian Cashman says the team will put their best foot forward to re-sign Soto.
“I had a conversation with (agent) Scott Boras yesterday,” Cashman said… “We certainly have an interest in retaining him and we’ll put our best foot forward there. But at the same time, that’ll either lead to us retaining him and signing him back. Or we’ll be forced to go in a different direction if we can’t. If we can’t, there’s a lot of different players in this marketplace that can positively impact this roster.”
In the playoffs, Soto hit .327 with 4 home runs and 9 RBIs.
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