SAN ANTONIO - Yankees officials departed Texas on Thursday with plenty of work to do as the offseason ramps up.
Here are three takeaways from the Yankees' GM meetings:
Soto's agent, Scott Boras, said on Wednesday there already was "a volume of interest" in his client. That means more than just the Yankees and the Mets. It is expected that Soto, whom Boras characterized as an "acquisition of something that increases your franchise" value, will land a contract of at least $500 million and, likely, something approaching $600 million, or beyond. Soto just turned 26 and is considered one of the best, if not the best, hitter in the game. Boras can do hyperbole with the best of them, but he was not wrong in saying a player of Soto's caliber, combined with his age, doesn't hit free agency all that often. It may well come down to the Yankees and Mets but there are other teams - the Dodgers, Padres, Phillies, Giants and Blue Jays, to name a handful - who have shown in recent years they're not afraid to offer big-money contracts, so get ready for a process Boras said will be a "thorough" one.
Brian Cashman said Soto is a piece the club would like to "retain" (obviously), but the longtime Yankees GM also has plenty of other needs. And the longer the process of Soto's free agency plays out, the worse the potential landmines for the Yankees. The club needs relievers, at least one corner infielder, and maybe two, and, if the Yankees don't get Soto, an outfielder. Cashman also didn't rule out adding to an already deep pool of starting pitching. Though he didn't straight up say the Yankees will be in a holding pattern in terms of addressing those other needs while Soto decides, Cashman did not dismiss that as a possible issue. "These great players are worth waiting on, to some degree," he said. "But I also understand that you don't want to put yourself in a bad spot that you wait so long and all the other alternatives come off the board, and now you can't do anything. You can't be there, either." Despite their best efforts, there's no guarantee they won't be.
Cashman said he has not yet talked with managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner about money available this offseason - whether it be the overall budget or the parameters of a Soto offer. Steinbrenner, speaking at the quarterly owners' meetings last May, said his 2024 payroll, a tick over $300 million, was not "sustainable" long term. "It wouldn't be sustainable for the vast majority of ownership [groups], given the luxury tax we have to pay," Steinbrenner said. The Yankees were among three teams (the Mets and Dodgers were the others) over the highest luxury tax threshold, which this year was $297 million, meaning those clubs are subject to a 110% tax on every dollar spent above that threshold. Steinbrenner, expected in town mid-month for another round of owners' meetings, wants to reduce payroll. The Yankees, according to Spotrac, already have a projected payroll of $235 million for 2025, which includes arbitration and pre-arbitration estimates. Not known is how fervently Steinbrenner wants to pursue lowering payroll. If he is, as Aaron Boone might say, "hellbent" on doing so, it will be fascinating to watch the Yankees try to thread the needle of lowering payroll, yet still aggressively going after Soto and addressing the club's other considerable needs.