What I’m hearing in MLB free agency about potential Juan Soto dominoes and more - The Athletic
The outfield market
Anthony Santander and Teoscar Hernández, ranked ninth and 11th on The Athletic’s Top 40 Free Agent Big Board, currently are on hold while the Soto negotiations continue.
The five known Soto bidders are the New York Yankees, New York Mets, Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers. Like Soto, both Santander and Hernández rejected qualifying offers, so any team that signs them will be subject to draft-pick compensation. But most if not all of the Soto losers figure to pursue them. And other teams also will be in the mix.
The best guess with Hernández is that he will return to the Dodgers on a three-year deal for more than $60 million. But with Soto, the Dodgers are doing what they often do with elite free agents, hanging around the backboard, seeing if the ball somehow falls into their hands.
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If Hernández somehow does not land back with the Dodgers, the Blue Jays might be his most logical destination. The Jays never should have traded Hernández to the Seattle Mariners two years ago for reliever Erik Swanson and pitching prospect Adam Macko.
Re-signing him could be a major step toward the Jays retaining Vladimir Guerrero Jr., with whom Hernández is very close. Signing Soto, on the other hand, almost certainly would ensure Guerrero’s departure after next season, unless the Jays are willing to carry two monster contracts.
Santander, 30, is a switch-hitter coming off a career-high 44 home runs, and two years younger than Hernández. Teams left without a power-hitting outfielder will be willing to overlook Santander’s deficiencies, starting with his career .307 on-base percentage. His defense is another question — Baltimore Orioles manager Brandon Hyde raved about Santander’s play in right field, but the metrics painted a less glowing portrait.
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The Blue Jays, meanwhile, have been down this path before. In December 2019, they pursued free-agent right-hander Gerrit Cole but ultimately signed another Scott Boras client, lefty Hyun-Jin Ryu.
It would not be surprising to see them follow the same blueprint if they failed to land Soto, adding Burnes or Fried as well as Hernández or Santander.
Get the idea?
The Soto Dominoes are going to fall. It’s just a matter of time.
