New Suitor for Yankees’ Juan Soto Could Mean ‘Unprecedented’ Bidding

Yankees OF Juan Soto is expected to be courted by Dave Dombrowski of the Phillies

Considering the numbers of Yankees star Juan Soto, there can be little surprise that he is generating the kind of interest he’s been getting from teams around MLB. The Mets, of course, were always going to be in Soto, eager to spend owner Steve Cohen’s money.

The Dodgers, even if they’re not neck-deep in on Soto, are as free-spending as teams in the league can be, so it shocked no one that they, too, were in on a Soto pitch. The Red Sox were a surprise addition, a team that has spent in the past but has, lately, turned off the spigot. They’re showing that they’re ready to change that.

The Blue Jays are, of course, a national market and have more to spend in free agency than most think.

But one team that was only on the fringes of a potential Soto pursuit has, it seems, entered the fray, too. That would be the Phillies, whose lead baseball man–Dave Dombrowski–has never been afraid to make bold moves for top players, dating back from his days in building the Marlins into a contender in the 1990s, and doing the same for the Tigers and Red Sox thereafter.

Phillies Ranked No. 4 in Payroll Entering 2024

The Phillies have a roster loaded with talent, a roster that could be put over the top with the addition of a player of Soto’s caliber. They won 95 games last season but were ultimately knocked out of the playoffs by the Mets.

The roster is not exactly cheap. The team has two contracts worth more than $300 million in total value on the books, for first baseman Bryce Harper (13 years, $330 million) and shortstop Trea Turner (11 years, $300 million). Entering 2024, their $243,476,617 total salary was fourth behind the Mets, Yankees and Dodgers.

To make room for Soto, the Phillies would have to move off of a current player, most likely right fielder Nick Castellanos, who hit .254 with 23 homers last year, and is on a five-year, $100 million contract.

Yankees Facing Big-Market Foes for Juan Soto

That’s one reason it was considered a longshot that the Phillies would get into the Soto sweepstakes. But on Tuesday, MLB insider Jon Heyman of the New York Post reported that, “The Phillies haven’t met with Juan Soto yet but they plan to. Not many teams want to win more than them.”

The Post followed up with a story on Wednesday titled, “Phillies joining the Juan Soto sweepstakes possibly setting up unprecedented bidding war.”

Wrote reporter Dan Martin: “And after taking care of meetings with the Mets and Yankees, Soto was expected to add the Dodgers to his list and, as The Post’s Jon Heyman reported, the free-spending Phillies will also be in the mix. So if you’re keeping score, that makes at least six teams interested in the offseason’s top free agent, with the Blue Jays and Red Sox also involved in the Soto Sweepstakes.”

“The Dodgers and the Phillies, combined with the Mets and Yankees, could set up an unprecedented bidding war among the big-market teams — especially between the Mets and Yankees.”