"Juan Soto may not have left" - Top sportscaster blames Aaron Judge's postseason struggles for losing superstar free agent and World Series to Dodgers
There are several reasons pointed out by analysts suggesting why the New York Yankees failed to land Juan Soto. However, ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith blamed Aaron Judge's postseason debacle as a big reason why Soto chose Queens over the Bronx.
Judge, who struck major league-leading 58 home runs in the regular season, came up short in the postseason. When things mattered the most, Judge could only hit .184 with three homers, nine RBIs and eight runs scored in 14 games. Judge's struggles at the plate resulted in the Yankees losing out against the Dodgers in the World Series.
On Tuesday's "First Take" show on ESPN, Stephen A. Smith shared his two cents on Juan Soto signing with the Mets instead of the Yankees.
"The other inescapable thing, Shannon—and I take no joy in saying this because I love him—is Aaron Judge," Smith said (0:10 onwards). "When you come up that small in the postseason, a superstar like Juan Soto notices. Soto certainly didn’t (come up small).
"When you look at the Dodgers and other teams in Major League Baseball, I have to have faith that when the moment arrives, you're going to be that dog who’s there with me—not someone who can't answer the call.
"If Aaron Judge had shown up in the postseason like the stud he is in the regular season and handled his business, the Yankees might very well have been champions, and Juan Soto might not have left. That’s something we have to look at."
Stephen A. Smith blames Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner after failing to land Juan Soto
Stephen A. Smith was blunt in his assessment of Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner. Juan Soto's agent Scott Boras reportedly went back to the Yankees to see if they could match the Mets' winning bid.
However, Brian Cashman & Co. decided to stand up their last offer which was 16-year, $760 million. The result: Soto agreed with the Mets on a record 15-year, $765 million deal.
During the MLB GM Winter Meetings, the Yankees general manager said they tried their best to retain Soto but have no regrets for not being able to close him. That irked Smith, who said:
"If you're going to fall, fall hard. If you want change, something like this needed to happen. The Yankees haven't won a World Series since 2009, and something like this had to shake things up.
"I’ll tell you this: the person I blame the most is Hal Steinbrenner. I think the late, great George Steinbrenner is turning over in his grave because Hal hasn’t run the Yankees particularly well."
It remains to see how the Yankees go about things this offseason. They are flushed with money and with many notable free agents out there, so they should make good on them.