"Juan Soto is going to crush Shohei Ohtani" – MLB insider points key advantage Yankees star has in free agency
Juan Soto is one person many believe could break Shohei Ohtani's 10-year, $700 million record contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers. The next biggest MLB contract is Mike Trout's 12-year, $426 million deal with the LA Angels.
Soto's clutch three-run homer in the ALCS clinching Game 5 Yankees victory has many calling for Brian Cashman to re-sign the Dominican. Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Giancarlo Stanton were vocal about wanting to have Soto as their teammate next season. Chisholm Jr. even called for the Yankees to offer $700 million to the All-Star outfielder.
On the Dan Patrick Show, veteran MLB insider Jeff Passan was asked whether Soto could break Ohtani's record in his upcoming free agency.
"Well, Caveat here," Passan said (3:42). "If we are adjusting for present-day value, you know, because 68 of 70 million dollars every year for the next 10 years of Shohei Ohtani's salary is going to be deferred, taking the actual value down somewhere between, like, you know, 350 to 475 million depending on how you do the math.
"If we're talking about just dollars today, then yes, Juan Soto is going to crush Shohei Ohtani, that I firmly believe."
When Patrick asked whether Soto could break Ohtani's "total worth of contract," Passan initially replied no but changed his mind after realizing Soto has one key factor helping him potentially break the record.
"He [Juan Soto] does have one real advantage in that situation," Passan said (4:27). "He's still only 25. He's not turning 26 until Friday, the day of Game 1. The fact that, if you are an organization and you want to get Juan Soto, you can stretch this contract very reasonably for 15 years, and you're still going up to only his 40th birthday at that point."
The veteran MLB insider pointed out there have been cases where players' contracts have extended beyond the age of 40. As a result, he argued that a team giving $46 million in free agency over 15 years is possible.
Passan predicts Juan Soto's free agency deal
How much money Juan Soto will make in free agency is a hot topic. To make matters interesting, Soto showed his slugging capabilities in the ALCS. If the Yankees win the World Series, the Dominican will likely claim a huge deal, particularly as he has Scott Boras as his agent.
Jeff Pasan gave his take on the matter after he pondered whether the Dominican could break Ohtani's record.
"I think what we are going to see is a single season, you know, adjusted for all those things," Passan said (5:32). "We'll see a single season high, and I think it's going to be easily, at this point, in excess of 500 million dollars. If it hit 600 [million], it wouldn't surprise me at all, but 700 just feels like it's getting up a little too high."
As the Juan Soto deal will be massive, only a select few teams have the realistic possibility of signing the Dominican. The Yankees are the frontrunners, along with the Mets. The Toronto Blue Jays and the San Francisco Giants have an outside chance.