Juan Soto is the most sought after hitter on the open market this offseason, and with that will come a hefty price for his services.
Soto, who recently turned 26 during Game 1 of the World Series, slashed .288/.419/.569 with a career-high 41 home runs, 109 RBIs, walking 129 times, scoring an American League best 128 runs and posting the second highest wRC+ and fWAR in the AL (180 and 8.1 respectively).
With Mookie Betts projected to primarily play in the middle infield next season, the Dodgers have put themselves in a position to sign an impact corner outfielder, with Soto being the biggest fish.
The Dodgers chances of getting Soto are a pipe dream, as Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports that the race for Soto is mainly down to two teams, the New York Yankees and the New York Mets.
“It’s the Yankees or the Mets,” one American League executive said when asked to handicap the Soto sweepstakes. “He knows the Yankees well after spending a year there, and Steve Cohen has enough money to give him whatever he wants if he decides he wants him badly enough. It’s tough for me to see Soto winding up anywhere else.”
Links
Just as how Yoshinobu Yamamoto was the most sought after international signing last offseason, another Japanese pitching phenom is attempting to do the same, this time being Roki Sasaki.
Kiley Williams of ESPN reports that Sasaki prefers to sign with a small market organization, but the Dodgers will have to offer him a contract similar to that of Yamamoto’s if they want to sway him over to a big sports market.
There are some complicating factors for the Dodgers this time, though: Some scouts think Sasaki would prefer a smaller market, and his velocity was down this year, leading some to believe he’s nursing an injury. But teams would be bidding on all of the traditional peak years of a pitcher who has been elite for years. That’s easily worth $200 million to almost any team, but he’ll come at a giant discount. That gambit paid off for Ohtani and could also pay off for Sasaki, or he could wait two offseasons and get a big payday up front, like Yamamoto did.
Teoscar Hernández was a true impact bat in the middle of the Dodgers’ lineup during both the regular and postseason, recording 33 home runs and 99 RBIs in the regular season, ranking second for the team lead.
Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times notes that Hernández’s intent of wanting to stay a Dodger is his biggest priority.
“My hopes are really high,” he said. “Like I’ve said before, the Dodgers are the priority, obviously. I’m going to do everything in my power to come back.”