We do not know if the Juan Soto “free agent auction” is in the final bidding, but if you followed the BS on Twitter/X, Soto already signed with the Boston Red Sox three days ago. Don’t worry, ESPN’s Jeff Passan publicly embarrassed podcaster Mick, a self-described Cape Cod insider with a podcast, who claimed Soto is already signed with Boston. Look, Soto could very well end up in Boston. That was always a logical destination — but we also know the rumors that Mets’ owner Steve Cohen won’t be outbid. So is it all about the money or the fit or both?
Now the funny part for Nats fans is when fake Nats’ reporter Seth Cummings posted an hour after Mick with his Soto to Boston post. He got over 260,000 views and counting on that tweet. First off, Cummings does not exist, except in someone’s warped imagination. The Twitter/X account was created in 2020, and claims that he is a “D.C. based independent baseball reporter covering the Nationals and other MLB offseason news” but then used an avatar photo of a Scottish man, Craig Stockman, who was arrested back in 2018. You can’t make this stuff up — but yet here it is. H/T to Phil who did the work to find that photo.
While Passan was upset, it still didn’t stop Mick from doubling and tripling down that the official announcement will be made this weekend of Soto to Boston. There is still nearly 14 hours remaining in the weekend. Mick has time. Don’t worry, Mick and the fake Cummings will take a victory lap if Soto does eventually sign with Boston which looks favorable after Hector Gomez had been reporting on strong offers by Boston to Soto that started earlier in the week and continued with his report of an increased offer of 13 years and $625 million.
There are signs that Soto might break records for this contract or at least come close to what Shohei Ohtani received. Gomez was the person who first reported the Nationals and Soto were discussing a contract extension that went over $400 million after TalkNats had reported an offer of $360 million. Everything that Gomez reported were later proved to be accurate. So Gomez’s reports this past week gave credibility that Boston was certainly “in” on Soto.
Yesterday, Mark Polishuk of MLB Trade Rumors did a Q&A and wrote this about Soto and the Nationals:
“Scott Boras always seems to have a “mystery team” or two in the works for clients, so it’s possible the Nats are just keeping quiet about things.”
— Polishuk wrote on MLB Trade Rumors
“But, more likely, it seems like Washington wasn’t ready to make such a huge splash just yet. Now, there’s a big difference between not wanting to pay Soto literally the biggest contract in baseball history and making some other notable signing, so I wouldn’t yet rule the Nationals out on a bigger-scale move.”
Our sources don’t even want to talk about the Soto situation, but early on we were told by someone that the Nats just asked Boras to contact them on where the money would need to be. To me, that would allow the Nats to be “a” mystery team IF they wanted to jump in. That is a big IF. But you never know. General Manager Mike Rizzo of the Washington Nationals already told Jesse Rogers of ESPN that he spoke to Boras about Soto.
If you know the way Rizzo and the Nats’ ownership work, they don’t float rumors out there to show they are engaging with top free agents. When news broke in January 2009 about the Nationals trying to sign Boras’ client, Mark Teixeira, the Nats said nothing. Years later, Nats’ former-GM, Jim Bowden, admitted it was true, and the Nats offered more than the Yankees which was the team that signed Teixeira. He wanted to “win now” and took less money to go to New York. It is rare that Rizzo will admit that he was bidding on a player like he did last year with Jeimer Candelario who signed with Cincinnati.
Again, there is a low percentage that Soto would sign with Washington, and there always was a low percentage that Soto would come back to the Nationals. Rizzo has many needs, and the outfield is one part of the team that Rizzo says he is confident in with Jacob Young, James Wood and Dylan Crews.
Hopefully Polishuk is correct that the Nats will make some other notable signing. Time will tell on that too. As mentioned, only two Top-50 free agents have been signed with Yusei Kikuchi and Blake Snell, and that leaves 48-names remaining in MLB Trade Rumors Top-50 rankings.
The Dodgers pounced early on Snell, and the Winter Meetings open up a week from today. We are now in December, and the offseason has over two months to go before Spring Training camps open up.
