The New York Yankees enter Thursday night looking to wrap up the American League Division Series with a win over the Kansas City Royals.
While they lead the series 2-1 while Gerrit Cole is set to make his second start of the postseason, the big question in the back of everyone's mind is whether superstar Juan Soto will be re-signed by the Yankees.
That's certainly not the priority focus, of course, with the playoffs taking place, but there was a slight update in the team's pursuit of the 25-year-old.
According to Jon Heyman of the New York Post, the Yankees have no qualms with offering Soto more money annually than fellow superstar Aaron Judge.
"The rumor that the Yankees will cap their final Juan Soto offer at $40 million annually because they can’t offend Aaron Judge (who makes $40M) is a 'lie,' according to a person familiar with their thinking. 'No one has ever said anything like that,' the person added. (Beyond that, Judge, a team guy, wants the team to be great.)," Heyman reported.
While this isn't a massive update as most expected the Yankees to be willing to essentially give Soto whatever he wants within reason, it is nice to know they won't limit themselves simply to avoid potentially hurting Judge's feelings.
Heyman also reported that his source believes the Yankees' biggest competition for Soto will come from the New York Mets, San Francisco Giants and Toronto Blue Jays. He also didn't count out the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Soto is very likely in line to sign a historic contract so it's almost guaranteed that he's going to surpass Judge's average annual value, regardless of where he signs.
