The future of former San Diego Padres player Juan Soto will be on the minds of New York Yankees fans.
The American League MVP favorite has been in excellent form this season with his new team, the Yankees.
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New York signed him from the Padres in a blockbuster trade last year, knowing he would hit free agency.
Soto, 25, says he is open to negotiations before then and wants to stay with the 33-15 Yankees.
But Bob Nightengale of USA Today Sports expects him to test the waters on the open market.
“Although Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner has said he is interested in engaging in contract negotiations with right fielder Juan Soto and agent Scott Boras to avoid free agency, with Soto saying he is willing to listen, the truth is that there is absolutely no chance of Soto signing before he is a free agent,” he said.
“He turned down a 15-year, $440 million contract offer from the Washington Nationals two years ago.
“So what’s another six months?
“Soto can keep hitting, sit back and watch the bidding war erupt between the Yankees and the New York Mets. Let’s see who blinks first and gives him $500 million.”
Soto is batting .317 with 11 home runs and 37 RBIs in 47 games.
New York is the only team to have three double-digit home run hitters, with Aaron Judge (12) and Giancarlo Stanton (11) also surpassing the mark.
Soto bounced back from a bit of trouble last time out with a multi-homer game against the Chicago White Sox.
“You have to work,” he said.
“I’ve been working on my swing, working with my hitting coaches, watching videos — trying everything to get that feeling back.
“I think we’re in a good place.”
Elsewhere, MLB rookie sensation Paul Skenes is setting the baseball world on fire in his first few starts.
The Pittsburgh Pirates’ top prospect struck out the first seven batters he faced on his way to six shutout innings last week.
Five Major MLB Rule Changes in 2024
1. The pitch clock is reduced from 20 to 18 seconds with runners on base. It will remain at 15 seconds with the bases empty.
2. When a pitching change is made, the inning clock will reset to 2:00 instead of 2:15 as happened last year.
3. Teams will only be able to visit four mounds per game in 2024, compared to five last season.
4. Fielders and fielders who block bases will be cited for obstruction by the umpires.
5. The runners’ lane from home plate to first base has been widened to include the dirt between the grass and the white line.
“My pitches worked a lot better for me than they did last time,” Skenes said.
“It’s really hard to compete without fastball execution, no matter who you are. It was a lot better today.”
Skenes was working a perfect game, retiring his first 13 batters before allowing a walk to Chicago Cubs slugger Michael Busch.
“He went right after them,” Pirates manager Derek Shelton said.
“He used all his pitches. The fact that he could go back and forth and then go back to the fastball when he needed to.
“When you go back to the fastball and it’s 100 mph, it changes the dynamic a little bit.”
This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
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