The answers are all suboptimal to some extent. The Yankees can look to improve their performance and make much-needed improvements by signing Alex Bregman, Pete Alonso or Christian Walker, with the first two options likely costing over $200 million.
However, all three are right-handed, which would greatly imbalance the lineup around Judge. Here’s where a trade for Cody Bellinger makes so much sense: They could probably import the left-hitting, athletically elite first baseman/outfielder from the Cubs for not much more than acquiring the potential $52.5 million that Bellinger will receive this year and next year (he has). a player option for 2026).
Bellinger-Bregman would be a dynamic combination and could push Judge back into an outfield corner. Having too many guys on long contracts well into their 30s wouldn’t hinder the Yankees’ vision of what an Alonso-Bregman exacta might look like, regardless of short-term gains.
Let’s not forget that they finished last season with a pretty good starting position, with Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodón, Clarke Schmidt and Luis Gil all upright and often outstanding. This gives them a huge advantage over almost all clubs, both on the field and in their winter activities.
Sure, they can drop their hat in the Rōki Sasaki competition, which would be a huge blessing. But in terms of big-ticket items, a left-handed hitter and an elite cornerback would go a long way toward accomplishing the task the Yankees didn’t want to take on: replacing Soto altogether.
Red Sox: Still aimlessly cheering
It’s hard to transition from six years of largely sitting out major free agency and aiming to build a “sustainable” winner to once again behaving like the big-market behemoth that they are. To their credit, the Red Sox stuck with the Soto sweepstakes until the end and reportedly reached $700 million with their bid.
But the Red Sox can’t shake their recent history, which has eclipsed Boston as a destination and painted them as outsiders for Soto’s services. So back to the drawing board.
The Red Sox are still unable to start pitching, especially with Lucas Giolito recovering from major arm surgery and Nick Pivetta in free agency. They are heavily committed to the two remaining elite free agents – Corbin Burnes and Max Fried.
If building around Soto at Fenway Park isn’t possible, your best bet is to focus on run prevention. And the Sox likely have the financial resources and would like to sign one or both of Burnes and Fried.
But will they? The right-handed Burnes and the left-handed Fried are both California guys, with the San Francisco Giants already heavily linked to Burnes. Given the parade of right-handers he sees, would Fried consider Fenway Park the best environment for his repertoire?
The Red Sox will show the money. The question is whether the players they need most will be inclined to sign with a .500 team.
Blue Jays: Woe, Canada
The Blue Jays are aiming for a three-peat next year, but it won’t be until 2025 that their own superstar will be able to turn down their big-money offer.
They continued their play, but failed to woo Shohei Ohtani with a similarly losing move against Soto, which was another reason to try. But both chases created the feeling that the Blue Jays were not only losers in this contest, but weren’t particularly close.
And now they have to worry about locking up Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
Perhaps we’ll learn more in the coming weeks and months, but it was likely an easy no for Soto to Toronto when his potential lineup mate, great slugger Guerrero, wasn’t signed beyond this year.
For someone who wanted control and the certainty that the club would win for years and more than a decade, Soto could easily envision a Guerrero-free future with 200 walks and third-place finishes in Toronto.
Now the Blue Jays have no choice but to overbid, not only to maximize their playoff chances during the running years of Guerrero and shortstop Bo Bichette, but also to convince Guerrero himself that it’s worth sticking around.
They’ve already invested heavily in pitching, including a $110 million deal for Kevin Gausman and a $131 million contract extension for José Berríos. But just like that, Gausman is a free agent after 2026 and Chris Bassitt is after this year. With money to burn, the Blue Jays should swim in the waters of both Burnes-Fried and the middle class with Jack Flaherty, Nathan Eovaldi, Walker Buehler and Co.
They definitely need offensive improvements, but that may have to come closer to the rim. And nothing is more important than re-emerging Guerrero, who now knows he’s still a good year away from replacing Soto at the top of the free agent ranks next winter.
Maybe it would stay that way all the time. But like Boston, the Blue Jays have failed in their attempt to provide security for new free agents beyond a massive paycheck.
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