All eyes are on the Shohei Ohtani situation, with MLB’s winter meetings getting underway on Sunday. Yet other superstars could be on the move too, including the San Diego Padres’ three-time All-Star Juan Soto. With Soto potentially up for grabs, teams like the New York Yankees are already trying to negotiate a blockbuster deal for the franchise cornerstone.
Yet, as multiple outlets such as The Athletic and The New York Post report, the Padres and Yankees are nowhere close to agreeing to a Soto trade thus far.
Some of this is likely due to the high asking price for the 25-year-old power-hitting outfielder. Another factor is that the Yankees are far from the only team trying to pry Soto away from the Padres. In fact, one of the Yankees’ American League East rivals are even chasing after Soto too.
According to The Athletic, the Toronto Blue Jays are also heavily pursuing a Soto trade and could view him as a potential backup plan should they fail to sign Ohtani in free agency. No matter what, the Blue Jays are trying to add a big bat to the heart of their lineup this offseason, and both Ohtani and Soto would certainly check that box.
However, the Padres are in no rush to trade Soto, who’s set for free agency next offseason and is surely looking to land a nine-figure contract extension now.
According to Jon Heyman, as many as nine teams have checked in trading for Soto. For now, with the Yankees’ advances rejected, New York could turn their attention elsewhere, but that doesn’t mean they’ll stop trying to find a trade that works for both parties.
Already rejecting a 15-year, $440 million extension from the Padres, expectations are that Soto will eventually sign a contract worth north of $500 million. Yet, that may not happen before a trade can get completed.
If the Padres do trade Soto, which is widely expected, they’re said to be prioritizing MLB-ready starting pitching. Both the Yankees and Blue Jays appear to have the pitching depth to part with, but the complication of Soto being under contract for just one year could make agreeing on trade value difficult. So far, that’s exactly what we’ve been seeing.
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