Hal Steinbrenner ‘100% committed’ to being competitive with Steve Cohen in Juan Soto acquisition race

Superstar free agent Juan Soto's free agency race comes down to the top five teams as per reports from MLB insider Jon Heyman.

Hal Steinbrenner ‘100% committed’ to being competitive with Steve Cohen in Juan Soto acquisition race

Hal Steinbrenner, Juan Soto, Steve Cohen [Image Credit: Fans for the Cure/Reddit/Bloombeg]

Superstar free agent Juan Soto’s free agency race finally lists down to five MLB teams, with the New York Yankees and New York Mets leading in the top. Just like all his previous meetings with the teams, the Yankees-Soto meet was successful, and the outfielder was reportedly interested.

The meeting took place on Monday when Soto, along with his agent Scott Boras, met with Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner, GM Brian Cashman, and manager Aaron Boone in California. Steinbrenner promised changes for the 2025 roster saying “there will be upgrades.”

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According to MLB insider Jon Heyman of NY Post, Juan Soto “felt better” after meeting the Yankees as they promised not to only be a team led by Aaron Judge. They’ll focus on other parts of the lineup and add or trade players to fill in those roles.

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Despite the NY Yankees reaching the World Series in October, they failed to keep up with the Los Angeles Dodgers due to defensive weakness. The game ended with LA demolishing the Yankees in five games.

While Soto loves being a Yankee, he is seeking a bit more from the team. He wishes to sign with a team that can not only satisfy him monetarily but also has a deep roster for the Championship race.

The Yankees fulfill all those conditions as they have fame and a reputation for being a ‘Yankee’, and they have quite a few veteran players on the team. Hal Steinbrenner believes they won’t lose to the NY Mets or any other team unless it vastly drives a margin deal-wise.

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Hal Steinbrenner and Juan Soto

Despite knowing Mets owner Steve Cohen’s deep pockets, Steinbrenner is set on being “100% committed” and see through the deal. They are “gung-ho” about re-signing Juan Soto and they may finally reach a deal as the outfielder felt positive following the meeting.

NY Yankees to bolster roster prior 2025 Spring training

NY Yankees’ owner Hal Steinbrenner noted they are fully committed to adding new players to the lineup to strengthen up before the Spring training. “I’ve got ears,” he noted when asked about the pitching roles.

NY Yankees
NY Yankees (Pic Credit: Imago)

They’ll be looking closely at the pitching market as they believe there’s nothing like having enough pitchers on the field. Roki Sasaki might interest them in this case, as Aaron Boone once talked about the Japanese ace. 

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Eric Orze, Juan Soto, Jose Siri

Regardless, they are committed to making changes after qualifying for the World Series this year after 15 years. Whether they trade or add new players, Soto and the rest of Yankee fandom will see a profound change in the roster and staff for the 2025 challenge.