Toronto Blue Jays Free Agent Target Juan Soto Makes Expected Decision on Tuesday

Soto has officially declined the qualifying offer from the New York Yankees, meaning the Blue Jays will need to surrender a high draft pick in addition to dropping hundreds of millions of dollars to sign him.

New York Yankees outfielder Juan Soto (22) hits a home run against the Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto (18) in the third inning for game two of the 2024 MLB World Series at Dodger Stadium on Oct 26. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Superstar outfielder Juan Soto made an expected decision on Tuesday, declining his qualifying offer from the New York Yankees.

Jon Heyman of the New York Post had the information:

This won’t shock too many people but Juan Soto has declined the $21.05M Qualifying Offer

— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) November 19, 2024

The qualifying offer is a one-year contract worth more than $21 million (though it goes up each year). Nick Martinez of the Cincinnati Reds accepted his offer, so it does happen, but more often than not they are declined. Martinez is the only player this year who accepted.

It was a foregone conclusion that Soto would decline his considering he has between a $600-700 million financial commitment coming to him from some team. He's already met with the Toronto Blue Jays, New York Mets, Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees. He's meeting with the Dodgers on Tuesday as well. The Philadelphia Phillies reportedly want to meet with him as well.

By declining the offer, the Yankees will receive a high draft pick if Soto signs anywhere but with them. That means that the Blue Jays, in addition to surrendering hundreds of millions of dollars, would need to also give up something that makes the farm system weaker. While that's never a preferred outcome for teams, it would be worth it for a player like Soto.

The 26-year-old star is one of the most impactful players in baseball. Already a batting champion and a World Series champion with the Washington Nationals, he hit just hit 41 homers and drove in 109 runs for the Yankees.

If the Blue Jays were to sign him, they'd pair him with Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to make up one of the best lineup duos in all of baseball. Soto is also a top-three MVP finisher this year in the American League.

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