Although he’s only been on the team for a few months, the Yankees appear ready and willing to commit to Juan Soto long-term.
Appearing on the YES Network podcast, owner Hal Steinbrenner said he would like to see the 25-year-old slugger continue to wear pinstripes “for the rest of his career.”
“I don’t think there’s any doubt about that,” Steinbrenner said. “His agent, Scott. [Boras], typically don’t tend to make mid-season trades. Neither do I. I think it can be distracting. But like I said when I met him in spring training, [the media], this is a unique situation and a very unique player. So I wouldn’t be shocked if we had a conversation or two during the season.
“I think it’s worth doing at some point. I wanted to give Juan some time to really settle in and at some point we’d have a discussion with him and obviously the most important thing is, is this a place where he can see himself for a long time? I wanted to confirm.”
Soto is making $31 million this season, his final year before free agency. The Yankees traded five players to the Padres in December for Soto, and we’ll see how the three-time All-Star fits into the clubhouse and handles the pressures that come with playing in New York. Gave me a chance.
After Thursday’s win over the Twins, Soto told reporters that “the door was always open” to signing an extension before free agency.
“They know the phone numbers and everything,” Soto said. “They know where to call. For me, my focus here is on playing baseball. My thing is trying to help the team win.”
Boras typically releases players to free agency when the deal is this close, but officials said negotiations between the Yankees and Boras are likely to take place at some point. Soto has emphasized his desire to win, and given the Yankees’ early-season success in his first year, the two seem to be a good fit.
Mr. Steinbrenner said his conversations with Mr. Boras were “very common” and pointed to his strong relationship with his agent.
“Whether he picks up the phone and calls me or vice versa, it’s happened many times in the past and could definitely happen again,” Steinbrenner said. Ta. “But again, like you say, I just wanted to focus on 2024. The most important thing is winning the championship this year.”
Soto turned down a 15-year, $440 million contract extension offer from the Nationals in 2022, which ultimately led to Washington trading Soto to the Padres at the 2022 trade deadline. After spending a season and a half in San Diego, Soto was traded to the Yankees in December. Many expect Soto to sign a contract worth at least $500 million this offseason, but if Steinbrenner has his way, Soto may not have to wait until free agency.
“We all know he’s generational, right?” Steinbrenner said. “He’s the complete package. I had no doubt he would perform here under pressure. There’s no question about that. How he interacts with the fans. , I was interested in how he would interact with the media and of course how he would interact with the other players, and those three things were really great, great, great…We loved his liveliness. I’ve seen that side of him. He’s fun to watch.”
