Like I said in the latest BN Blogathon check-in, I have been wondering all afternoon if things with Juan Soto were finally coming to a head. There was chatter behind the scenes that suggested it, and a handful of public reports touching lightly on the negotiations.
For example, this had the feel of talks moving along:
Then you had the Yankees certainly behaving like they knew the market was about to uncork, and now there’s this:
On the one hand, if that’s true, then the Cardinals are either unreasonably high on Dylan Carlson, or it’s the inclusion of both Jordan Walker and Masyn Winn that is giving them pause. Neither should be an issue for JUAN SOTO, but whatever. To each their own.
On the other hand, if this is just negotiation efforts, then you wonder who this is coming from and who it’s designed to push. I could speculate that it’s from the Nationals, who have the Cardinals as their preferred trade partner, but alternatively wanting either the Padres or Dodgers to swoop in with an offer that tops the Cardinals and seals the deal. “Hey, we’re REALLY close with the Cardinals, but they just won’t quiiiiiite get there for us, so what do you have?”
I’m not sure if it’s that one, though. I’ve gotta believe that, by this point, the negotiations with all teams have advance well past the stage of this kind of public ploying. Lines have likely been drawn, and there’s some chicken going on. What I’d really like to know is whether any of those three teams is going to finally make some other move (that eats up their top prospects), deciding that they’re “out.”
Maybe all three teams will decide they’re out, if the lines they’ve drawn are truly firm, and if the Nationals won’t accept less than the line they’ve drawn. Here’s hoping.
Negotiations are reaching a “critical point,” according to Morosi. It would be nice to have a resolution by tonight, so that everything else can follow cleanly – with some space to negotiate – tomorrow.
UPDATE: Jon Morosi is guessing it winds up being the Cardinals:
Makes you wonder all the more where Morosi is getting his information. Does he know that the Cardinals have the current high offer on the table, and one or more of the other bidders has already bowed out?
Speaking of which, multiple folks who were watching YES said that Jack Curry reported the Cardinals and Dodgers are the favorites for Soto. (Cubs and Padres in talks, in that case?)