Juan Soto, the New York Yankees’ newest prized possession, didn’t mind the questions.
Certainly, he welcomed everyone’s interest.
He respects the curiosity.
But no, he did not drop a single hint on Tuesday, share any thoughts, or come close to suggesting his stay in New York will last longer than a year.
He seemed genuinely excited to be with the Yankees, saying it was surreal to put on a Yankee cap before starting his 30-minute zoom call, but kept every last thought of his future strictly to himself.
HOT STOVE UPDATES: MLB free agency: Ranking and tracking the top players available.
“Any contract stuff,’’ Soto said, “they know where to call, who to talk to. I’m just here to play baseball…
“My mindset is coming here to play baseball and try to win a championship.’’
While agent Scott Boras was also on the call, he remained silent.
But let’s be honest here. There’s a better chance of the Kansas City Royals and Pittsburgh Pirates meeting in the 2024 World Series than Soto signing an extension before he hits free agency.
The Yankees’ advantage now is that have the next 10 months to prove to Soto this is the place he wants to play for perhaps the rest of his career.
And, if they want him, they’re certainly going to have to pay him.
Soto, who already turned down a deferred 15-year, $440 million contract extension two years ago from the Washington Nationals, is determined to become the richest baseball player in history.
Certainly, he wants to crack the $500 million barrier, and break Shohei Ohtani’s record with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Ohtani signed a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but with $680 million deferred, the contract is worth about $460 million, MLB officials say.
But while Ohtani is baseball’s greatest two-way player, and twice has been a unanimous MVP, Soto is a three-time All-Star, four-time Silver Slugger, but has never won the award. He twice finished in the top five, including second in 2021, his last full season with the Washington Nationals.
He was on a loaded team in San Diego, surrounded by Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts and Fernando Tatis, but the Padres never came close to winning the division during his stay, and missed the postseason in 2023.
Now, he’s on a team with former MVPs and home run champions Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton, with Judge expected to play in center field and Soto in either left field or right field.
“It’s going to be amazing,’’ said Soto, who was on the call from his Miami home. “It’s going to be really fun. I’m going to be more than excited to share the field with him. He seems like a great guy. One of the guys that reached out to me when I got traded.
“It’s going to be fun to see him play, hitting and play the outfield. I’ll try to pick his mind when I’m there, and try to enjoy the moment while I’m there.’’
The Yankees didn’t trade five players to the Padres for Soto and outfielder Trent Grisham just to help Soto’s free-agent stock. They believe he could be the missing piece on a team that finished just 25th in runs last season, missing the postseason.
“We understand that he’s a free agent at the end of this term, and we understand that it’s a possible short-term situation,” Yankees GM Brian Cashman said last week. “I just know he’s just going to make our team significantly better.”
Soto, who was playing Nintendo with friends when he got the news of the trade, wasn’t exacty throwing his joy stick up in the air in excitement. He wanted to stay in San Diego for at least one more year. He loved playing with the Padres, and believed that last year was a fluke, believing they could bounce back and take control of the division.
He will never know.
All that matters now, at least in the Bronx, is that he gets the Yankees back to being the Yankees, the beast of the AL East.
This is the bat the Yankees badly need for a sagging offense, with an outfield that produced only a 2.9 WAR, the sixth-weakest in baseball. Soto, with his career .946 OPS, should remedy that, along with the acquisition of outfielder Alex Verdugo from the Boston Red Sox.
While the short porch in right field at Yankee Stadium is a left-handed hitter’s dream, letting folks imagine they are going to have another rendition of Aaron Judge, Soto wants everyone to calm down. Simply, he is not a pull hitter. He hit 196 balls into the air last season, according to Statcast, and just 49 balls (25%) were hit to right field.
He is not going to change his swing just because he’ll be playing 81 games at Yankee Stadium.
“We all know there’s a really short porch there, and it’s got to be on your mind,” Soto said. “But definitely, I’m going to try to stay in the same approach I’ve been doing. That’s what has taken me all the way to where I am right now, so there’s no reason to change anything.”
Soto, who played left field last season for the Padres, says it doesn’t matter whether he plays left field or right field. He prefers to hit third, which would be ideal to protect Judge, but wherever they want to put him in the order, he’s fine.
Soto, with uncles and friends who live in New York, knows there will be distractions. This is New York, not San Diego or Washington. He will constantly be asked about free agency wherever he goes.
And he will consistently provide no clues.
“I mean, I’ve been doing it for six years,” he said. “I think it’s not going to be that hard, because I have one of the best agents in the league. So. I put everything on him and let him do his magic.’’
Playing in New York can be grueling on the psyche. It can chew up and spit out the weak. But it also can provide the ultimate high. And now Soto will be able to play in front of a Dominican community, where he’ll be worshipped.
“It’s definitely just a great vibe, a great feeling to be playing in New York and in that stadium,’’ Soto said. “It’s going to be really fun to see how much energy they bring to the ballpark.’’
The way Soto envisions it, he’ll have a monster season, the Yankees will flourish, and they’ll be playing through late October, all of the way until November.
“In a perfect season,’’ he said, “we’ll win a championship.’’
