MLB Rumors: Juan Soto naysayers, Taylor Ward trade, Yankees Gerrit Cole deadline

The upcoming MLB offseason is set to be one of the more impactful winters of this generation. There are multiple Cy Young winners, MVP's and All-Stars that are set to enter free agency. There are other All-Stars that could be traded this winter as well.

We're just days into the offseason and there's already a ton of movement around the league. Players are opting in and out of their contracts while others are patiently waiting for free agency.

For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work on The Baseball Insiders podcast, subscribe to The Moonshot, our weekly MLB newsletter, and join the discord to get the inside scoop between now and the MLB offseason.

MLB rumors: New York media reluctant on signing superstar Juan Soto

For the last few months, teams around MLB have been drooling over the idea of signing Juan Soto to their franchise when he reaches free agency. Now that Soto is in free agency, there are members of the media that are pumping the breaks a bit.

New York Yankees radio analyst, Suzyn Waldman, appeared on the Maggie & Perloff show Friday where she voiced her hesitance to re-sign Soto for the rumored price tag of $600+ million.

“[Juan Soto] is really something,” Waldman said. “What he is not, is a right fielder … Are you really going to break the bank for Juan Soto and still have to put Aaron Judge in center field?”

“Everyone is so focused on Juan Soto. There are eight other positions on the field that you can’t fill right now … If you don’t fill those positions correctly you’re gonna replay this year.”

Believe it or not, members of the New York Mets media are on the same wavelength. the Mets color analyst on SNY, Ron Darling, also spoke on his hesitance to paying Soto that big of a number.

"I don’t know why I want to say no. I just think that as we discovered in the postseason, one player doesn’t ensure that you win a World Series,” Darling said (via Dan Bartels). “[Soto] is as great a hitter as I’ve ever seen and [Aaron] Judge had as great a season as has ever happened, but one player doesn’t make it. I don’t know, maybe you get two $300 million players.”

When push comes to shove, just about every team in the league would be willing to mortgage half a billion dollars to bring Soto in.

MLB rumors: Angels outfielder Taylor Ward connected to trade rumors this winter

Last season, the Los Angeles Angels failed to move a ton of pieces that they were expected to trade at the trade deadline. One of those pieces was outfielder Taylor Ward, who had a very hot market surrounding him for the entire trade season. But Los Angeles didn't move him. Now, heading into the offseason, they could capitalize on his trade value and move him this winter.

Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors seems to think that the Angels could explore a Ward trade this offseason.

"Whether they embrace a short-term reset or look to balance the MLB roster without dealing from one of the league’s worst farm systems, there’s a case for moving," Franco wrote. "The 30-year-old left fielder has been the subject of trade speculation dating back to last offseason. The Pirates and Royals reportedly checked in at the most recent deadline. Nothing came together."

Plenty of teams around the league would be interested in Ward, beginning with the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Kansas City Royals, as Franco mentioned. But teams like the Cincinnati Reds and Philadelphia Phillies would also make some sense. Plus, they have major league pitching that they could ship to the Angels in the deal.

MLB rumors: Gerrit Cole opts out of contract. What's next?

Heading into the offseason, the Yankees understood that Gerrit Cole was likely going to opt out of his contract. But he wasn't going to opt out so that he would enter free agency. Instead, his decision to opt out would force the Yankees to add an additional year to the end of his contract, effectively bringing him back instead of letting him enter free agency.

But maybe the Yankees take a different path here.

Jomboy of Jomboy Media recently pitched a very intriguing idea for the Yankees to consider. Instead of bringing Cole back by adding an additional year of $36 million at the end of the contract, the Yankees could just re-do the entire deal. In this hypothetical, they would give him five years at $40 million a year, but $30 million is in deferred money.

Cole gets a raise and the Yankees save money on the cap in order to re-sign Soto and add other talent to their 2025 roster. It's the perfect plan that would benefit both sides.

The Yankees have until Sunday evening to make a decision on whether to extend Gerrit Cole’s contract by 1-year, $36 million or let him become a free agent.