Trade negotiations between the New York Yankees and San Diego Padres have hit a stalemate heading into the winter meetings, but both sides are expected to reengage over the next few days.
Ideally, the two sides would come to a conclusion on a prospective deal ahead of the Rule 5 draft, so it is possible that Juan Soto will be a Yankee by the end of this week. Obviously, that would not only offer the fans a great reason to buy into the 2024 team but also help the Yankees’ offense take a massive step in the right direction after being one of the worst units in 2023.
The talk of the town has been Juan Soto over the past few weeks, but for the first time, we are getting a sense of what the player himself feels about all the rumors and speculation.
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According to NJ.com, Soto doesn’t care where he ends up, he just wants this part of the off-season to pass, situating himself in a new home. He is sure that the Padres will move on from him and his expected salary of over $30 million for the upcoming season.
“He just wants this over with,” the source said. “He doesn’t care where he goes. He knows the Padres aren’t keeping him, so he wants them to trade him.”
Yankees Have Rumored Competition
The only two teams to be rumored as competitors for Soto via the trade market are the Yankees and Toronto Blue Jays. At this point, there haven’t been any reports that the Blue Jays have offered a package of players, whereas reports indicated precise names the Bombers have been swapping with San Diego. Nonetheless, Soto doesn’t care if he ends up in the Bronx or in Toronto; he just wants to know where he’ll be featured next season.
“He’d be happy going there (to the Yankees),” the source said. “But he’d be happy going to Toronto, too. He says he doesn’t care where he plays. He just wants to know who he’ll be playing for.”
Soto is coming off a campaign where he played all 162 games. The 25-year-old is not only young but also extremely durable. He hit .275 with a .410 OBP, a .519 slugging rate, including 35 homers and 109 RBIs, and a 155 wRC+. Adding his offensive talent to the Yankees batting order alongside Aaron Judge would do marvelous things, but it is still a “what if” and not a guarantee.