Go Get Juan Soto

[Centerfield]

Ok. Lots of good pieces of the team are in place. Cohen has shown restraint letting some big fish pass.

But now is the time. Get Juan Soto. The Mets need a guy like him. The Dodgers have Ohtani. The Braves have Acuna. The Phillies have Harper. Gotta get Soto.

Whatever it takes. Make him an offer he can’t refuse.

[Frayed Knot]

Turns 26 on Friday

[Centerfield]

Can we sign him by Friday? I’d be down with that.

[metirish]

But we have vibes

[metsmarathon]

i could see the mets going after soto and walker, and thanking pete for his services.

i could also see them going after soto and keeping pete, too. i'd be ok with that too.

[MFS62]

If I could pick two, I'd go for Soto and Santander and let Pete walk (because he can't run any more) slowly out the door.

Later

[ashie62]

"Soto & Santander"

I new beauty experience from the makers of Sephora

[metirish]

If I could pick two, I'd go for Soto and Santander and let Pete walk (because he can't run any more) slowly out the door.

Later

What's with the fixation on Santander ? You've mentioned him many times , assuming it's the guy in Baltimore? The 30 year old

[cal sharpie]

I'm skeptical as to whether Soto is really gettable. It does appear as if he happy withe MFY's and will take their many millions over our many millions.

[batmagadanleadoff]

I'm skeptical as to whether Soto is really gettable. It does appear as if he happy withe MFY's and will take their many millions over our many millions.

Same here. He's already in New York.

[Benjamin Grimm]

Maybe the Mets will have to offer him many many millions to the Yankees' many millions.

[Marshmallowmilkshake]

I saw one report speculating Soto could be looking for $600 million to $700 million. And take the report for what it is worth because no one is better at trial balloons than Scott Boras.

But say that's true. The Yankees are already paying Cole $324 million with an AAV of $25 million, and Judge $360 million, with an AAV of $40 million, and Stanton has two years left at $36 million each plus Rodon's $27 million.

I suppose anything is possible and deals can be structured in any way, as the Dodgers learned with Ohtani. But can the Yankees really take on a $50 million a year contract? Mets have all that money coming off the books and an owner who might be more motivated to spend than Hal.

I guess it depends if Soto is chasing the dollars or will take a little less to be a True Yankee.

[Centerfield]

Boras is his agent. Which doesn't guarantee anything, but at least suggests he's willing to consider the highest bidder. The Mets need to be that highest bidder. Not match, not be in the mix, but be the highest bidder.

Consider the impact bats these other teams have.

Top 25 MLB OPS Leaders for 2024

Yankees
Judge #1, Soto #3

Dodgers
Ohtani #2. Betts #15, Freeman #16, Teoscar #21

Phillies
Harper #10. Schwarber #17

Braves
Ozuna #9. (Acuna was injured, but his career .904 OPS would have been #10, Riley, Albies and Harris all lacked enough ABs to qualify)

Padres
Profar #21, Merril #25 (Tatis didn't have enough ABs, but would have been #23,


The Mets had one guy in the top 25. Francisco Lindor. #19.

[MFS62]

If I could pick two, I'd go for Soto and Santander and let Pete walk (because he can't run any more) slowly out the door.

Later

What's with the fixation on Santander ? You've mentioned him many times , assuming it's the guy in Baltimore? The 30 year old

Yes, he's 30, but he plays RF, and IMO the Met need to upgrade the OF offense. He hit 44 HR and the Mets could move Vientos to first and add a third baseman, or find out if Mauricio is ready. If not, I've seen reports that the Mets would be interested in Willy Adames (now on the Brewers). He's a shortstop but could move to 3B.
Later

[TransMonk]

Santander's best OPS+ season is Pete's average season OPS+. They are almost exactly the same age and Santander won't be called on to run anywhere Pete can't.

If it's about money, then, OK, I guess. But it shouldn't be about money this off-season if they are serious.

I'll be OK with the decision on Alonso either way. But I think he's consistently better than Santander overall.

Oh, and, yeah, the Mets should go get Juan Soto.

[batmagadanleadoff]

Consider the impact bats these other teams have.

Top 25 MLB OPS Leaders for 2024

Yankees
Judge #1, Soto #3

Dodgers
Ohtani #2. Betts #15, Freeman #16, Teoscar #21

Phillies
Harper #10. Schwarber #17

Braves
Ozuna #9. (Acuna was injured, but his career .904 OPS would have been #10, Riley, Albies and Harris all lacked enough ABs to qualify)

Padres
Profar #21, Merril #25 (Tatis didn't have enough ABs, but would have been #23,


The Mets had one guy in the top 25. Francisco Lindor. #19.

Pete Alonso ranked 39th. If you lower the requirement to 450 PAs, Mark Vientos ranked 23rd in the majors in OPS in 2024.

https://www.fangraphs.com/leaders/major ... t&qual=450

[MFS62]

Santander's best OPS+ season is Pete's average season OPS+. They are almost exactly the same age and Santander won't be called on to run anywhere Pete can't.
If it's about money, then, OK, I guess. But it shouldn't be about money this off-season if they are serious.

I just think Alonso is heading into a rapid decline, while Santander is just reaching his peak. Money would be a secondary plus, allowing them to fill other needs(although money doesn't seem to be a problem, the difference could land them a stud starter.). As others have mentioned, moving Vientos to first would open up other opportunities.
Later

[batmagadanleadoff]

I'm skeptical as to whether Soto is really gettable. It does appear as if he happy withe MFY's and will take their many millions over our many millions.

Same here. He's already in New York.

Maybe the Mets will have to offer him many many millions to the Yankees' many millions.

Winning the World Series won’t make keeping Juan Soto any easier for the Yankees

Aaron Judge left money on the table to stay in New York long-term. The Yankees won’t get as lucky with Juan Soto, even if they win the World Series.

Sure, Soto is an unquestionable competitor who will want to go somewhere he consistently has a chance to play in October. The pending free agent was just 20 years old when the Washington Nationals won the World Series in 2019. He still calls that team “a family” and for years after — even when the Nationals traded him away — Soto had that family and their trophy as his cell phone’s screen saver.

In San Diego, despite struggling at times, Soto was identified by numerous people in the organization as the rare star who truly cared more about winning than individual numbers. Losses bothered him equally when he was 0-for-4 or 4-for-4, though going hitless often led to hours in the cage. That was a habit he picked up while still in Washington; Soto spent one October night in D.C.’s batting cages with former hitting coach Kevin Long, working until well past midnight to get out of a slump, only to later emerge as a Nationals playoff hero.

Soto doesn’t just relish the game’s biggest moments, he feeds off them, as evidenced by his 10th-inning home run late Saturday night that sent the Yankees past the Cleveland Guardians and clinched New York’s first World Series appearance since 2009.

It would be foolish to think winning it all wouldn’t matter to a player like Soto, who is expected to sign a mega-contract this winter that could lock him up for the next decade or more. But records matter, too.

Multiple people told The Athletic this spring they believe Soto’s camp is after Shohei Ohtani’s record-breaking deal. Ohtani’s contract included 97 percent deferrals, but still put his present-day average annual value at roughly $43.78 million, or closer to $46 million when calculated for luxury tax purposes.

Soto, making $31 million in his final arbitration year, could easily eclipse both those numbers and set a new record, though Ohtani’s overall number of $700 million still seems like a pipe dream unless Soto is willing to accept heavy deferrals. (It’s worth noting that it’s not unheard of for Scott Boras clients to accept heavy deferrals. Soto’s former teammate Max Scherzer signed a seven-year, $210 million deal before the 2015 season that had record deferrals at the time.)

Soto, who will turn 26 on Friday, was widely thought before the season to be seeking offers starting at around $500 million. Fresh off a regular season in which Soto posted an 8.1 fWAR — trailing only Judge, Ohtani and Bobby Witt Jr. — it wouldn’t be a surprise if Soto’s youth and playoff performance push him closer to $600 million.

Boras, coming off a disappointing offseason for some of his top clients, shouldn’t have a problem getting Soto — who has drawn Ted Williams comparisons — every penny he deserves. But any notion that the Yankees winning the World Series would give them a significant leg up on re-signing superstar Soto seems wishful at best.

Trophies are nice, but Soto — who turned down $440 million from the Nationals before he was traded in 2022 — has often spoken about advancing the market and pushing things forward for the next group of players. That’s not exactly the mindset that signifies a willingness to leave tens of millions on the table, like Judge did in turning down the San Diego Padres.

In finally getting to pick his team, Soto isn’t signing up to lose for the foreseeable future — I don’t think the Miami Marlins or Chicago White Sox could pay him enough, even if both very unlikely suitors decided to. But the other team expected to be a major player for Soto, the Steve Cohen-owned New York Mets? Well, they just had a heck of a run, finishing two wins shy of playing the Yankees.

Soto loves New York; he has family in the area and his parents can easily fly from the Dominican Republic to stay with him. If it truly is a two-team race for Soto’s services — and with him preferring the East Coast and the big money involved, it very well could be — it’s tough to imagine a scenario where a few more October wins play a tangible role in distinguishing the Yankees from the Mets.

Cohen is the richest owner in the sport, unafraid to storm through luxury tax layers. Should Cohen decide he has to have Soto, convincing him and Boras that the Mets are on the upswing shouldn’t be hard. Under president David Stearns, the organization is expected to undergo significant internal changes, replacing and restructuring more than 20 positions in his second full season at the helm. Stearns and rookie manager Carlos Mendoza squeezed the most out of the roster and the Mets rode a wild-card berth — clinched a day after the regular season was supposed to end — to the NL Championship series.

On neither New York team will Soto immediately become the team’s star; both Francisco Lindor and Judge are signed with their respective teams until 2032. Though if being the face of an organization is important to Soto, Lindor doesn’t get nearly the national spotlight or attention Judge commands.

The Yankees went all-in on trading for one year of Soto and they’re four wins away from having that bet pay off handsomely. But to keep him in pinstripes beyond 2024 will require one thing: record money. Any other talk is exactly that.

https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/586084 ... ee-agency/

[Centerfield]

Cohen quit his day job to focus on the Mets. I don’t know if I’m being naive here but if he decides he wants Soto, I can’t imagine he won’t extend the type of offer that other teams won’t touch.

Bobby Ax wouldn’t lose him to Hal Steinbrenner.

Also. Gotta figure it’s in Boras’s best interest to keep Cohen happy too.

[metirish]

https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/player/mark ... /juan-soto


Spotrac market value

[MFS62]

https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/player/mark ... /juan-soto


Spotrac market value

Interesting. But I think to get him, someone will have to crack the $40 million mark.
He will get what someone is willing to pay him, unless his agent has some number in his head that someone would have to match and it may be beyond what the suitors want to pay.
Later

[metirish]

Oh boy

[Edgy MD]

The difficult part of comparing the two cases is that they are about 15 years apart, and practices and policies have changed over time, specifically to combat this issue.

[metirish]

[Centerfield]

So, I'll start with the caveat that you can give almost no weight to what an athlete says about his upcoming free agency. Especially within a few minutes of a tough loss like that. But the interesting thing from last night, and really every time he's been asked this year, Soto has not given any hint at all that he has any special feelings for the Yankees, or that they have any inside track on the bidding. In fact, he said multiple times it's just the opposite. He's open to all teams. No team has any advantage.

And that's just kinda striking. Usually you hear stuff like "Hey, I loved it here. I'd love to stay. We'll see how it works out."

One reporter asked him something like "if the money is right, would you be open to staying" And that's the biggest layup in the world. "Yes, of course. I loved it here. Would love to come back. Let's see how it plays out". But that wasn't Soto's answer. He was like "I mean, we gotta sit down and look at it...whenever we get a chance...."

It's crazy. It's almost like he's going out of his way not to show any love for the Yankees. Again, you can't read much into this. I'm sure he's been coached by Boras. But it's almost like he either doesn't want to come back, or he wants to come back but is trying to tell the Yankees "hey, you're gonna have to outbid everyone, not just match them."