SAN DIEGO, CA - JULY 26: Juan Soto #22 of the San Diego Padres flips his bat after walking during ... [+]
All Star outfielder Juan Soto, who turned 25 in October, will be wearing New York Yankees pinstripes in the coming season.
On December 7, the Yankees obtained Soto, along with outfielder Trent Grisham, in a seven-player trade with the San Diego Padres. The Padres received right-hander Michael King, and prospect pitcher Drew Thorpe, along with right-handed pitchers Jhony Brito, and Randy Vasquez, along with major league catcher Kyle Higashioka in return.
The left-handed hitting Soto can now take aim at the friendly right field stands at Yankee Stadium.
This will be the third team in parts of six years for Soto, who was signed by the Washington Nationals as an international free-agent out of the Dominican Republic in 2015.
Unless he signs an extension with the Yankees, Soto can become a free-agent at the conclusion of the 2024 World Series.
Soto has long expressed a desire to play for the Yankees, and it seems probable the Yankees will make him a long-term contract offer.
Soto turned down a proposed 15-year, $440 million contract when he was with the Nationals. The team then traded him to San Diego.
One can only imagine the length and financial average of a long-term deal Soto will require in his next contract.
Soto was traded to the Padres, along with first baseman Josh Bell on August 2, 2022 for outfielder Robert Hassell, pitcher Jarlin Susana, outfielder James Wood, pitcher MacKenzie Gore, shortstop CJ Abrams, and first baseman Luke Voit.
In all, 11 players have been traded in two separate transactions involving Soto.
The Yankees just obtained outfielder Alex Verdugo in a December 5 trade with the Boston Red Sox. The Yankees traded right-handed pitchers Richard Fitts, Greg Weissert, and Nicholas Judice to Boston.
In two deals this December, the Yankees have traded seven pitchers.
Soto was an All Star the past three seasons, has won four Silver Slugger Awards, and was named a member of the All Major League Baseball team in 2020, and 2021.
Soto won the National League batting title in the pandemic shortened 2020 season, when he hit .351, .490, .695, 1.185 with 13 home runs, and 37 RBIs in 196 plate appearances.
A tremendously patient hitter with a very keen eye at the plate, Soto walked 132 times this past season for the Padres. In fact, in 2021, he drew 145 walks, and 135 more in 2022. In his career, Soto has drawn a whopping 640 bases on balls in 3,375 career plate appearances.
Soto finished 2023 with a 3.3 WAR, and he has a career 28.6 WAR in 779 games played.
This past season with the Padres, Soto hit 35 homers, scored 97 runs, drove in 109 runs, stole 12 bases in 17 attempts, and walked those 132 times. And some people feel Petco Park in San Diego actually hampered Soto’s production.
If that was the case, imagine what he can accomplish playing half his games in Yankee Stadium, where the right field bleachers are only 314 feet from home plate.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 23: Aaron Judge #99 of the New York Yankees celebrates his solo home run ... [+]
Lethal Yankees Lineup:
If the season were to start tomorrow, Fangraphs lists the potential Yankees starting lineup to be:
DJ LeMahieu-3B
Aaron Judge-CF
Juan Soto-LF
Anthony Rizzo-1B
Gleybar Torres-2B
Alex Verdugo-LF
Giancarlo Stanton-DH
Anthony Volpe-SS
Austin Wells-C
To this writer, it seems possible Trent Grisham could claim the CF role, with Verdugo either being traded, or coming off the bench. Soto would move to left, with Judge playing right.
However the outfield configuration shakes out, the Yankees will deploy one of the most prolific, dangerous lineups in recent Major League Baseball history. From a power standpoint alone, opposing pitchers will get acid reflux just thinking about facing the Yankees sluggers.
Here are the 2023 home run statistics for Yankees players:
Aaron Judge-37
Juan Soto-35
Gleyber Torres-25
Giancarlo Stanton-24
Anthony Volpe-21
Not too shabby, especially when one considers Judge and Stanton missed considerable time due to injuries. And Anthony Rizzo hit 12 homers playing in only 99 games due to injuries.
TORONTO, CANADA - SEPTEMBER 27: Gerrit Cole #45 of the New York Yankees pitches in the ninth inning ... [+]
Pitching Challenges:
While the Yankees return to “Bronx Bombers” status, their organizational pitching depth suffered in their two most recent trades.
Fangraphs lists their potential starting rotation to be:
Gerrit Cole-RHP
Carlos Rodon-LHP
Clarke Schmidt-RHP
Nestor Cortes-LHP
Clayton Beeter-RHP
The Yankees, however, remain in discussions with Japanese 25-year-old right-handed starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Yamamoto was dominating in the Japan Pacific League the past three seasons. He won 49 games in that span, with ERAs of 1.39, 1.68, and 1.16.
While the Yankees covet Yamamoto, so do their cross-town rivals, the New York Mets.
In fact, Mets owner Steve Cohen, and president of baseball operations David Stearns flew to Japan to meet with Yamamoto and his family. The Mets will pose very stiff and serious competition for the Yankees.
It is being reported that the Yankees may be on the short list of lefty free-agent starter Jordan Montgomery. Montgomery, 30, is a large presence on the mound, at 6-6, 228 pounds.
Montgomery was drafted by the Yankees in the 4th round in 2014. He pitched for New York for parts of six years, before being traded to the St. Louis Cardinals in July 2022.
The Cardinals traded Montgomery to the Texas Rangers in July 2023, where he helped his new team win a World Series Championship.
Montgomery entered free-agency after the World Series, and is one of the top pitchers available on the open market.
A stack of 250$ and 1000$ dollar bills, US, 1987. (Photo by Alfred Gescheidt/Getty Images)
Yankees Payroll:
Without the addition of Soto, who is expected to earn $33 million in his final year of arbitration, the estimated Yankees 2024 payroll would have been $279 million. That figure will clearly escalate, especially if the Yankees add another quality starting pitcher like Yamamoto or Montgomery.
New York will likely find themselves at the top of the 2024 MLB Luxury Tax system, with the top threshold being $297 million.
Payroll and finances aside, the Yankees got their man.
Juan Soto is a generational talent.
Juan Soto has just scratched the surface of unlimited baseball talent.
Soto’s new home at Yankee Stadium perfectly fits his swing, and offensive prowess.
