The New York Yankees, the Baltimore Orioles’ biggest rival, have as big a free agency looming as any team in Major League Baseball.

With Juan Soto and Gerrit Cole potentially free agents, there’s a chance the Yankees won’t have two of their top three players on the roster in 2025.

There are many reasons why this would benefit the Orioles, as they are their biggest threat in the American League East.

The situation with Cole is slightly different, as Soto will enter free agency regardless. As for the right-hander, he could opt out of his $144 million contract from 2025 to 2028 and become a free agent if New York doesn’t add a 10th year to his $36 million contract.

From his perspective, it’s an easy decision to opt out of his deal and guarantee himself long-term money in the later stages of his career.

Bleacher Report’s Tim Kelly predicted he would do just that.

“It’s going to be an interesting offseason cat-and-mouse game between Cole – a Boras client – ​​and the Yankees. He’s now 34 and has played more than 1,950 innings in his career. But the Yankees probably need him more than they do.” , and the bet is that if he forces them, they will ultimately guarantee him $36 million in 2028, his age-37 season if the Yankees allow Cole to opt out and decline to pick up his 2028 option , they could be left empty-handed if he leaves in free agency, as he is ineligible for the qualifying offer after previously receiving one from the Houston Astros following the 2019 season.”

It will be an interesting decision from the Yankees’ perspective, as there is reason to believe they could potentially let him walk.

If they want Soto to sign a lucrative deal, they need as much money as possible.

The problem, however, would be that if they were to sign him to a long-term contract, they would still have to compete in other areas. Signing one player to a huge extension and not having his ace back wouldn’t help him move forward.

There is a situation here where Baltimore gets a perfect result and loses both players. For a team that could use a bounce back from their biggest rival, it’s something to watch for Orioles fans.

Nevertheless, the same could be said for Baltimore’s free agency, as there are many uncertainties surrounding the club.