Juan Soto rumors: Six top finalists, Boras breaks silence, some Yankees optimism

The entire MLB offseason hinges on Juan Soto.

Much like last winter, when the entire league was in a holding pattern until Shohei Ohtani landed with the Los Angeles Dodgers, teams (and players) will wait until Soto figures out his next move. From there, it will be a cascading effect. Teams who miss out on Soto will need to pivot. Whoever does land Soto probably needs to make financial sacrifices. Everything will spiral out from the Soto sweepstakes.

So, forgive us if we start diving into the nitty-gritty of the Soto rumors in early November. We won't get a firm answer on Soto's future for a while, but the four-time All-Star and his agent are already laying the groundwork for a bidding war of historic proportions.

There isn't a more transformative talent available this free agency cycle. Not only does Soto have the statistics to justify a major payday — .288/.419/.569 with 41 home runs last season — but he's 26 years old, at the very beginning of what promises to be a long and productive prime. There's a real chance that Soto inks a 10-to-15-year deal and produces the whole way through.

Here's the latest buzz on his situation.

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Yankees optimistic about Juan Soto despite coy comments and media misdirection

Juan Soto has steadfastly maintained that he is open to listening to all 30 teams in free agency. The New York Yankees media machine gave him every opportunity to say 'yeah, I'd like to be here' or 'yeah, I am leaving this winter,' but Soto never took the bait. He has been well-trained in the Scott Boras playbook, keeping teams guessing all the way to an ungodly payday.

That said, despite Soto's intentional misdirection and complete refusal to outright embrace the Yankees as his preferred destination, there is confidence within the organization that Soto wants to re-sign, per SNY's Andy Martino.

"Having said that, there is definitely a sense around Soto that he enjoyed the Yankee experience and will return if the team presents what he considers a fair offer. The notion that Soto will simply go to the highest bidder no matter what appears oversimplified, but the Yankees will certainly have to come close. From a player perspective, Soto has a responsibility to future generations of free agents to continue to push salaries upward."

This is great news for the Yankees. Outbidding Steve Cohen may be impossible, but so long as the Yankees are in the same ballpark, it would appear that the Bronx Bombers hold the advantage. Hal Steinbrenner worried fans with comments about slashing payroll during the season, but a World Series run appears to have cleared up any lingering doubt. The Yankees want to bring back Soto and should willingly break the bank in order to do so.

The Mets are going to push hard, but the Yankees are operating from a position of strength.

Scott Boras dubs 'winning' the top free agent priority for Juan Soto

MLB superagent Scott Boras broke his silence on Juan Soto's hotly anticipated free agency this week. He outlined Soto's priorities as he fields offers from around the league, and it should come as no surprise that winning is top of mind after a crushing loss on the World Series stage.

"Juan loves winning and winning organizations and a winning owner," Boras told ESPN's Jorge Castillo. "The geography part of it is that Juan and his loved ones are going to be comfortable. That's what's most important to him. And major league geography ... Juan's played on both: West Coast and East Coast. His main thing, the priority, is winning."

There have been reports that Soto prefers the East Coast over the West Coast, but Boras won't state that publicly. It's free leverage if the Dodgers think they have a shot, and thus Soto is open to playing anywhere, so long as it's a winning situation. Odds are the teams with enough money and motivation to sign Soto will be of the winning variety.

Obviously, the Yankees have a long history of contending at the highest level, often with the game's biggest stars on their roster. The Mets, for example, have the MLB's most liquid owner in Steve Cohen. The Dodgers, well, we know how the Dodgers operate. Soto won't come cheap, and he won't end up stewing in mediocrity either. He's out for that elusive second World Series ring.

Six teams are listed as potential destinations for Juan Soto

Juan Soto has said he's open to all 30 teams, but Jon Heyman listed six teams as "in" on Soto in a recent Bleacher Report stream. He also mentioned a potential spoiler lurking in the shadows.

"Mets, Yankees, Giants, Blue Jays, Red Sox, Dodgers. A half-dozen teams I think are in. I've heard there's a small-market team, we'll call that the mystery team for now. Is that likely to happen? Very unlikely."

All the usual suspects, pretty much. There is a widely held belief that it will come down to either the Yankees or Mets, but there is a lot of buzz around the Blue Jays, who made a run at Soto last winter. The Giants have been trying and failing to land a superstar for years (including almost prying Aaron Judge out of New York a few years ago) and the Dodgers are always lurking with boatloads of cash. The Red Sox? Well, it's a nice thought for Boston fans. But let's be serious.

This is bad news for the Philadelphia Phillies, who are a logical Soto destination with plenty of reported connections. As for the small-market "mystery team," well, we may never know who that is. Odds are Soto won't end up playing in a small market, though, so don't get your hopes up, Royals fans. (It's obviously the Royals, right? That makes sense.)