“Why would you leave?” Chris ‘Mad Dog’ Russo QUESTIONS Juan Soto on leaving Bronx for Mets 

MLB pundits discuss what the NY Yankees should do as their next step following Juan Soto’s leave for Queens.

“Why would you leave?” Chris ‘Mad Dog’ Russo QUESTIONS Juan Soto on leaving Bronx for Mets 

Chris 'Mad Dog' Russo and Juan Soto [Image Credit: Deadline/Yardbarker]

The New York Yankees are already on the move to add more players to the team and trade for ones necessary. After Juan Soto ended up joining their cross-town rivals, the team is left to add key players from the free agency market.

In an interview, Chris ‘Mad Dog’ Russo was confused about why Soto joined the New York Mets when the Yankees offer was $760 million. The Mets boosted their offer by $5 million more prior to closing time and secured the superstar outfielder. 

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Currently, Soto is signed up with the Mets on a 15-year deal guaranteed to make $51 million AAV as the highest-paid player in MLB. Russo said that even the Mets weren’t sure who Soto would choose until the end. However, he questioned why he did so, especially given the Bronx’s history.

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Why would you leave the Yankees? Why would you leave the bleacher creatures, the Yankees stadium, right field, Aaron Judge, the history of the franchise…I mean it’s the Yankees now!

Chris ‘Mad Dog’ Russo on YouTube. 

Russo further went on to say that he’d understand why Juan Soto chose the Mets over the Yankees if the contract offers were vastly imbalanced. But since that wasn’t the case, to leave playing with Aaron Judge and the Bronx is something he didn’t understand.

Mets owner Steve Cohen said he would up any offers from rival teams to get Soto, and they did. The MLB world is now moving on from the Soto saga to discuss what the Yankees need to do now that they have lost the outfielder to the rival team.

NY Yankees lost Blake Snell in wait for Juan Soto in free agency

The NY Yankees have to hurry or they may again lose someone like Blake Snell to another team in the free agency. According to industry sources, Snell had a last-minute Zoom call with the Yankees to see if they were interested.

Blake Snell and Juan Soto
Blake Snell and Juan Soto [Image Credit: Sporting Tribune/Bleacher Report]

Unfortunately, the team couldn’t make a move on the deal as they were waiting for Soto’s reply. They lost not only Soto but also Snell in the process. Looking back, Soto’s service offer started from $600 million and ended up at $765 million. 

For the Yankees to spend $700 million plus in free agency, they could not sign any top-tier player until now. They are interested in Teoscar Hernandez, Roki Sasaki, Max Fried, and Corbin Burnes. Their lineup for 2025 may see some changes with Jasson Dominguez taking over the center field position.

Cashman said that they are also keeping an eye on Caleb Durbin for a position. Things can shift in any direction now that the team has $700 million plus to add up multiple players to the team and strengthen the roster. Most signings are expected to settle down before the Winter Meetings.