The 2024-2025 MLB offseason is going to be headlined by the Juan Soto sweepstakes. Last season was headlined by Shohei Ohtani's free agency decision and Ohtani didn't disappoint, signing on of the most interesting contracts in MLB history.
Now Soto is projected to sign a contract north of the $500 million mark with the New York Mets and New York Yankees being the two favorites to sign Soto to the massive deal. Yankees fans have done their part to show love to Soto, often chanting "Re-sign Soto!" during Yankees home games. The Yankees front office is also doing their part to make Soto feel loved and valued in the Bronx.
If the Yankees are going to have an advantage over the Mets and everybody else in the Soto sweepstakes, it's going to be because of Soto's familiarity and comfortability with the Yankees and the personnel in the organization.
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.
Yankees owner gets a head start in Soto sweepstakes with July meeting
Brendan Kuty of The Athletic is reporting that Yankees owner, Hal Steinbrenner, had a private meeting with Soto back in July.
"Part of that intelligence-gathering mission included a private meeting between Soto and one of the people who may shape the outcome of winter’s most prominent free agent pursuit: Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner," Kuty wrote. "The previously unreported meeting, between the market’s top free agent and the owner of one of baseball’s most well-heeled franchises, took place at Yankee Stadium in July, inside a room near the home clubhouse."
Something like this is pretty uncommon in baseball, specifically in such a big market like New York. Kuty reports that most of the conversation between Steinbrenner and Soto is how his experience has been with the Yankees since arriving in the offseason via a trade with the San Diego Padres.
“It’s always good to see (an owner) coming over at least to say hi,” Soto said, “see how we’re doing, what we have in mind, this and that. It’s great to have an owner that really cares for players.”
Soto, 25, is playing as well as ever. He's slashing .288/.418/.571 with a career high 41 home runs and a projected top 3 AL MVP finish. His attention is turning towards the postseason now, where he looks to be a key piece in bringing home another World Series for the Yankees., their 28th all-time and first since 2009.
As of now, Soto's attention is on the postseason. The Yankees can boost their odds of retaining him with a successful postseason. That's not a shock, since Soto is a Scott Boras client, and for the most part, they test out free agency. Steinbrenner met the young superstar but the most important thing that any team can do is give Soto the money that he wants. That will remain to be seen after the playoffs and we're at the start of winter.