Throughout the off-season, several sources indicated that Toronto was one of the main destinations where Juan Soto could land.
Soto and his representatives met with the Blue Jays and a few other teams last month. There are indications that Toronto has put the best offer on the table.
But according to a new article from MLB.com which is full of expert opinions, the Blue Jays may not have much of a chance of signing the star player in reality.
“Personally, I find it difficult to believe that Steve Cohen (the owner of the Mets) is going to let himself be beaten by the Blue Jays in the bidding wars. Or by anyone for that matter,” said journalist Anthony DiComo.
Mark Feinsand argues that even if the Jays offered the most lucrative contract, it might not be enough in comparison to the market of the Mets and the New York Yankees.
“To entice a player to move to another country, the team almost always HAS to have the best offer. But I spoke with four people across the league today and none of them think Soto is going to end up in Toronto even if he did,” Feinsand said.
Soto reportedly received tempting offers from the Jays, Mets, Yankees, Red Sox and Dodgers. His agent, Scott Boras, says the most attractive player on the market is starting to eliminate teams from negotiations.
“We met with many organizations. He began to eliminate some teams from the race. Juan is very methodical, so we’ll see. I don’t think an announcement is imminent,” Boras revealed Tuesday in Los Angeles.
Soroka back in the rotation?
According to The Athletic, several teams view Canadian free agent Michael Soroka as a starting pitcher and not a reliever.
“Some teams have indicated to Soroka that they want to see him compete for a spot in their starting rotation during spring camp. The only ones who see him remaining in the bullpen are those who don’t have an opening in their rotation. »
The 27-year-old Calgary native spent three seasons with the Atlanta Braves as a starter between 2018 and 2020, but suffered a torn achilles tendon this past year, which greatly hampered his career. .
He worked hard to return to the Majors in 2023, then he was traded to the Chicaco White Sox last year. He had a 6.39 ERA in nine appearances on the mound as a starter in 2024, but was more effective when he moved to the reliever role, lowering his ERA to 2.76 in 16 outings. However, according to what underlines The Athletic, it may be that this progression is more due to a change in his pitching strategy, since his type fastball four-seam (four-seamer) increased his strikeout total and decreased walks.
