Juan Soto rumors: If the Yankees fail, here’s how they’ll blow it

As the Juan Soto rumors ramp up, if the Yankees fail to acquire the outfielder from the Nationals, it’ll be because they failed to do this.

The Washington Nationals have made All-Star outfielder Juan Soto available in a trade. With the deadline just about 48 hours away, there’ve been plenty of teams that have “checked in”, but no team has emerged as the true frontrunner for Soto’s services.

The New York Yankees are one of the teams that have shown interest in acquiring Soto. While the San Diego Padres and St. Louis Cardinals are the favorites, the Yankees haven’t been eliminated from the discussion.

However, the Yankees missed out on trading for Cincinnati Reds pitcher Luis Castillo last week. The right-hander instead has a new home with the Seattle Mariners. Will the Yanks make the same mistake again and miss out on Soto?

If the Yankees fail to trade for Juan Soto, here’s how they’ll blow it

The New York Yankees have one of the deepest farm systems in Major League Baseball. Along with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Texas Rangers, the Yankees are seen as one of the few teams who have five or more prospects among the Top 100 in the sport.

If the Yankees fail to acquire Juan Soto at the deadline, it’ll be because they clung too tightly to some of their highly-valued prospects. That’s why Luis Castillo isn’t in pinstripes as we speak; GM Brian Cashman did not want to include shortstop prospect Anthony Volpe in a trade with the Reds.

Volpe is a tremendous talent. But is he going to be as good as Juan Soto? If so, how long will that take? Prospects are little more than that until they prove it at the highest level. While Volpe could be a fantastic shortstop for the Yankees in the next year or two, Soto would make New York World Series favorites today.

Sometimes, in order to have success, you have to sacrifice the future for the present. The New York Yankees could build a package for Soto around Anthony Volpe, left-hander Ken Waldichuk, outfielder Jasson Dominguez, and a few other top prospects.

The Yanks could still hold on to highly-regarded shortstop prospect Oswald Peraza so as to not completely bleed the farm system dry. But if they really want Juan Soto, it’s going to cost them Anthony Volpe and a whole lot more.