Juan Soto is a Yankee
The Yankees sent a stable of players to San Diego for one of the best players in the game, Juan Soto (yes, and Trent Grisham).
The prized possession and requested piece for San Diego was reliever Michael King, who might have had some starting duties for the Yanks in 2024 had he stayed in the Bronx. Soto is a free agent at the end of the season, so his future in New York is unknown right now. Remember, not too long ago he rejected a 15-year, $440 million deal from the Washington Nationals. Perhaps he felt like he couldn’t pay for his groceries AND gas for transportation with that amount. We will never know. Anyway, Soto is in pinstripes and here are five reasons why this is great for the Yanks despite not guaranteeing anything on the field.
1. Great player. It’s that simple. Soto is a great player and any team in any sport needs great players to win. You’re talking .275-30-100 stuff here at a minimum with a bunch of walks and he can play a solid right field.
2. Balance in the lineup. A guy who can hit for average and for power from the left side. The Yanks have lacked a lot of that despite having the “Short Porch” in right field. By the way, enough of the narrative that it’s a pitching wedge over that fence (ESPN’s Michael Wilbon is the most annoying with this). Go look at the distance when Babe Ruth played. 295 feet. SHUT IT. Back to Soto. You can now mix and match from 1-9 in the order, however manager Aaron Boone decides to do it. A consistent, balanced lineup of lefties and righties would do this team some good. There has been too much flip flopping in recent years and Soto can help bring some stability. Think of something like this 1-7 and fill in the rest later: DJ LeMahieu-Juan Soto-Aaron Judge-Anthony Rizzo-Giancarlo Stanton-Alex Verdugo-Gleyber Torres. Pretty solid. Don’t forget, it can change and will change, especially when Stanton gets hurt for the 200th time and continues to not live up to his contract in any way, shape or form.
3. Win now mode. Gerrit Cole and Aaron Judge are in their prime years and the Yanks so far have wasted those. These are the Yankees. Expectations are sky high annually and the franchise hasn’t won it all since 2009. Regardless if Soto is in the Bronx long term, by getting him you put your eggs into the 2024 basket to win NOW. Also, getting Soto gives the fan base a new hope, a feeling that the Evil Empire hasn’t actually disappeared and that Hal Steinbrenner and Brian Cashman aren’t actually sleeping on the job.
4. OBP/instant offense. Soto’s On Base Percentage is extremely high every year as he will always be on base. He will wear pitchers down, extend the lineup and give NY more chances of scoring runs. The Yankees were one of the worst offensive teams in baseball last season and that must improve. Soto also helps with that. Home runs, hitting for average, doubles in the gaps. You name it, he can do it. The guy is an offensive machine and a nightmare for opposing pitchers from both sides.
5. Clutch. Soto, meanwhile, can hit with men on base. There is a difference here between #4 and #5, so don’t get confused. You can be an instant improvement to a once stumbling offense that now scores a ton of runs over a long season but doesn’t do it when it matters. Think a lot of 12-6 wins against bad pitching and teams. But also hit in the clutch? Hit with two outs and men on base in a 3-2 game against Houston and AL East rivals and others? Drive in runs in that same circumstance in the playoffs? Soto covers all that. The Yankees desperately need to get back to the playoffs after missing them last year. Soto’s playoff numbers? In seven series he has hit .261 with 7 home runs, 29 hits, 21 RBI and 13 walks. For the 2019 World Series champion Washington Nationals, he hit .333 with an OBP of .438 and collected 3 home runs and 7 RBI and 9 hits. Hitting with runners in scoring position has been the biggest weakness for the Yankees, both in the regular season and the postseason. Soto provides an instant improvement.
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