MLB Off-season Rumours: Do the Jays have a realistic chance in Soto sweepstakes?
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Do the Jays have a realistic chance in Soto sweepstakes?
All off-season, multiple reports have indicated the Toronto Blue Jays are on the shortlist of teams superstar free agent Juan Soto is considering signing with. Soto and his representatives met with the Jays in addition to a handful of other teams last month and a report from earlier this week indicates there is "widespread belief" Toronto may come in with the highest offer.
But according to a new article from MLB.com featuring the opinion and reporting of a number of beat writers, the Blue Jays might not have much of a chance at actually signing Soto at the end of the day.
"I, for one, find it hard to believe [Mets owner] Steve Cohen is going to allow himself to get outbid by the Blue Jays. Or by anyone, really," New York Mets reporter Anthony DiComo said in the discussion.
MLB.com senior national reporter Mark Feinsand notes that even if the Jays slightly top the Mets' or New York Yankees' best offer, it might not be enough.
"To get a player to move to another country, they almost HAVE to be the highest bidder. But I spoke with four people around the league today, none of whom believe Soto will wind up in Toronto, even if the Jays are the highest bidder," Feinsand said, adding Toronto would likely have to significantly outbid both New York teams.
"I'm not going to comment specifically on pursuit [or] lack thereof," Jays general manager Ross Atkins said earlier this week. "The interest is obviously there from all 30 teams."
Reports indicate Soto took offers from the Jays, Mets, Yankees, Boston Red Sox and Los Angeles Dodgers. His agent, Scott Boras, said Soto is starting to eliminate teams from negotiations.
“We’ve had meetings with a number of franchises. He’s begun the process of eliminating teams and doing things and so he's — Juan is a very methodical thinker. So we’ll see. But I don’t think anything is imminent in the near future," Boras told reporters Tuesday in Los Angeles.
Soto is the clear No. 1 player available this winter, coming in at the top spot on TSN's Top 75 MLB Free Agents list from last month. TSN Baseball Insider Steve Phillips predicted in the piece that Soto would sign with the Mets for 14 years and $701 million, ever so slightly topping Shohei Ohtani's deal from last off-season.
Soroka to return to the rotation?
According to Katie Woo, Will Sammon and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, more teams view free agent Michael Soroka as a starting pitcher than view him as a reliever.
"Some teams have told Soroka that they’d want him to compete for a rotation spot in spring training, league sources said. The only teams that prefer him in the bullpen are the ones without any openings in their rotations," read's Monday's story.
The 27-year-old Calgary native spent parts of three seasons with the Atlanta Braves as a starter from 2018 to 2020, but suffered an Achilles tendon tare during the latter season which derailed his career. He struggled upon returning to the big leagues in 2023 and was traded to the Chicago White Sox last off-season. He had a 6.39 ERA in nine outings as a starter in 2024, but was much more effective once moving to the bullpen, pitching to a 2.76 ERA in 16 appearances.
However, as The Athletic's story notes, Soroka's improvement can be attributed to a change in pitch usage where he threw more four-seam fastballs coming in as a reliever, upping his strikeouts and cutting his walks.
Padres in position to land Sasaki?
The San Diego Padres are in a strong position to land free agent right-hander Roki Sasaki, according to reporter Francys Romero.
Reports have indicated Sasaki is close with Padres righty Yu Darvish, who has spent the last four seasons in San Diego.
He is likely to sign after Jan. 15 when teams have their international free agent bonus pools replenished.
The 23-year-old went 10-5 last season for Nippon Professional Baseball's Chiba Lotte Marines, recording a 2.35 ERA and 129 strikeouts in 111.0 innings.
Kim posted, available to sign
South Korean infielder Hyeseong Kim was officially posted to Major League Baseball teams and will be available to sign as a free agent from Thursday through Jan. 3 at 5:00 p.m. ET.
Kim, 25, has played eight seasons professionally in his native South Korea, the past six with the Korea Baseball Organization's Kiwoom Heroes. Kim set career-highs with a .326 batting average, 11 home runs and 75 RBIs while stealing 30 bases.
Kim is the No. 42 ranked player on TSN's Top 75 MLB Free Agents list released earlier this month.
Reds in the market for bats
After fortifying their rotation earlier this off-season, the Cincinnati Reds are now looking to add hitters.
Team president Nick Krall told MLB.com's Mark Sheldon that the Reds “are looking to add hitters” and have a "little bit of flexibility right now."
"Most likely it’s going to be an outfielder over an infielder, but I wouldn’t rule anything out just yet," Krall said.
The Reds brought back right-hander Nick Martinez via the qualifying offer and also completed a trade with the Kansas City Royals to acquire righty Brady Singer in exchange for infielder Jonathan India.
Sheldon notes that Michael Conforto, Max Kepler, Jurickson Profar, Teoscar Hernandez and Paul Goldschmidt could make sense as potential adds for the team.
Holmes likely to depart Yankees
Dan Martin of the New York Post wrote on Monday that reliever Clay Holmes is expected to sign with a team other than the New York Yankees in free agency this year.
Holmes began the year as Yankees closer and made his second All-Star team but lost the ninth inning job down the stretch of the season to Luke Weaver. According to Joel Sherman, also of the New York Post, teams are inquiring about Holmes transitioning from the bullpen to the starting rotation. Holmes has not started a game in the big leagues since 2018 but as Sherman notes, Holmes has started in the minor leagues and teams looking to turn relievers into starters is beginning to be more and more common.
Recent examples include Seth Lugo with the Kansas City Royals, Reynaldo Lopez with the Atlanta Braves and Jordan Hicks with the San Francisco Giants. Reports indicate right-hander Jeff Hoffman, who excelled out of the Philadelphia Phillies' bullpen this past season, is also drawing interest as a starter.