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    • Do the Yankees have an advantage? No.
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    Do the Yankees have an advantage? No.

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    NEW YORK — In a matter of moments, the New York Yankees went from Juan Soto’s employer Wednesday night to just one of 30 teams that could pay for his services next year.

    Soto, the 26-year-old slugger and baseball’s most coveted free agent this winter, made it abundantly clear that while the Yankees will certainly have a chance to retain his services in bids likely to exceed $500 million, his decision will almost certainly be different from that of his power-hitting partner, Aaron Judge.

    The Yankees moved relatively quickly to re-sign Judge to a nine-year, $360 million deal after he hit 53 home runs in 2022. But Judge was always a homegrown Yankee who would soon become the captain.

    Soto? He was a World Series champion at 21, traded by the Washington Nationals by the time he was 23 and dealt again to the Yankees before this season. That’s a lifetime of dizzying moves in just a few years.

    And yes, the marriage was nearly perfect: Soto hit a career-high 41 home runs, posted a .989 OPS, gave Judge a run for his money for AL MVP and went on to dominate the postseason, posting a .327 average, four home runs , a 1.102 OPS and a pennant-clinching homer.

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    Yet it all ended in Game 5 of the World Series, a 7-6 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers, pushing Soto out the door early Thursday morning.

    His Yankee teammates really want him back. Soto?

    “I think every team has the same opportunity going into free agency,” he said after Game 5 at Yankee Stadium.

    But the excitement of New York, the knowledge that comes with being a Yankee, the incredible partnership with Soto, the love he and his teammates all claim to feel in the home clubhouse – that creates the feeling that Soto would prefer New York, right?

    “I don’t think so,” Soto said firmly. “I’m very happy with the city, with the team, but ultimately we’re going to look at every situation, every offer we get, and go from there.

    “I don’t know which teams want to come after me, but I’m open to this and any team. I haven’t closed any doors or anything like that. I will be available for all thirty teams.”

    Okay, so the Tampa Bay Rays or Pittsburgh Pirates aren’t going to make a run at Soto. His market realistically consists of no more than half a dozen teams, with clubs like San Francisco and Toronto still hungry to make a splash in free agency, Philadelphia always a living dog and, as agent Scott Boras says, the masses next week on the general staff. During manager meetings, a handful of mysterious teams will emerge.

    With that in mind, labeling the Yankees as one of just 30 might be a bit shocking to fans who have fallen in love with Soto this year and realized how important he is to their future.

    Let alone his teammates.

    “We were fortunate to have him here and it would be great to continue playing with him,” said Judge, who enjoyed arguably his best all-around season with Soto ahead of him.

    “Because he is a special player. I think everyone in this room wants him back. Beyond looking at the stats, it’s the type of leader he is in this clubhouse. A lot of the little things that people don’t notice make him one of the best, if not the best, players in the game.

    “He’s a scientist there. I would definitely like to see him in pinstripes for a long time.”

    For now, Soto plans to sit and wait with Team Boras. Boras’ clients have been known to do well in the free agency process, and while Soto won’t have to sit out a large chunk of spring training like the so-called Boras Four did this year, he’s willing to take the market to to let him come.

    That’s not good news for the Yankees, who were certain no preemptive strike was possible. As expected, the question for them is: how much do they want him?

    The fans made their voices heard and serenaded management with pleas to re-sign Soto this year. Did the chants affect him?

    “It will probably impact the ownership decision,” Soto said with a laugh. “We’ll see how it goes.”

    The judge says Soto should enjoy the free agent process and reap the rewards he earned during the six years of service that freed him up. Fellow slugger Giancarlo Stanton, who signed a $325 million extension with Miami before a trade to New York, says he can’t offer Soto free agent advice.

    Well, maybe a bit.

    “Stay with us, maybe?” he asked.

    It doesn’t hurt that the Yankees won 94 games and the AL pennant. Soto will likely go to the highest bidder, but also to a winning franchise — the two are often correlated — and New York has an advantage in that regard over suitors like the Giants and Blue Jays.

    But next month they will all be on a level playing field until offers are made, countered and considered.

    “It’s always great to have a champagne shower,” he says of the idea of ​​returning to finish the job in New York. We’ll see what happens in the offseason.

    “The Yankees are one of the teams. And we’ll go from there.”

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