As the old saying goes, "The devil is in the details."
This couldn't be truer than this winter's "Juan Soto sweepstakes." Everybody in baseball has been caught up in the idea of how much money Soto will land. The idea is that whichever team offers him the biggest contract will land him, which is true to a certain extent.
But Soto is going to sign for over a decade. He needs to be comfortable with the owner and the front office of the team he's signing with. While he spent a year with the New York Yankees, Soto never really connected with the front office and the owner.
Jon Heyman of the New York Post recently discussed Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner's meeting with Soto last week. Heyman also noted that Steinbrenner didn't connect with Soto last season, but intends to improve that relationship immediately.
"While he loved the Judge-led clubhouse, Soto is seeking a strong rapport with whatever owner he's partnering with for up to the next 15 seasons. And word is he felt better about Steinbrenner and the Yankees after their meeting, when MLB's most marquee franchise also emphasized its edge over everyone else in revenue, tradition and brand," Heyman wrote.
With Soto looking to sign a deal that makes him a cornerstone player for a team for the next 15 years, it's completely understandable that this player-owner relationship means a lot to him. And in a decision between two similar monetary contracts, Soto is likely to lean toward the one with the owner he feels stronger about.
At the end of the day, money still rules everything. If the Yankees aren't willing to fork up the cash, it doesn't matter how much Soto and Steinbrenner get along.
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