"It was really uncomfortable" - Yankees star Juan Soto opens up about pressure of rejected contract, public negotiations

New York Yankees outfielder Juan Soto has always been in the spotlight for his great batting abilities. But in an interview at the beginning of this month, Soto revealed how pressured he felt when contract negotiations between him and the Washington Nationals became public in 2022.

The Nationals reportedly offered him $440 million for 15 years, but Soto declined. He was then traded by the Nationals to the San Diego Padres on Aug. 2, 2022.

"I was a guy who was loyal to the team. I always tried to say, 'Anything we do business-wise, it was just between the team and myself.' And it was really shocking for me, it was really tough for me. It was really frustrating at the same time because I really trusted that team.

"I gave all my trust to be able to negotiate and do things like that, and when you see stuff like that, you just feel so bad. It was really uncomfortable," said Soto in an interview earlier this month, according to ESPN.

The reason Soto faced pressure from the public negotiations regarding his contract rejection was that no one could believe he turned down such a huge amount of money.

He rejected the offer because the Nationals franchise was up for sale at the time. He did not want to go to a team that did not have an owner.

"You're being offered a contract from a faceless owner,” said agent Scott Boras to Juan Soto, according to ESPN.

Juan Soto, 25, has been an All-Star three times and also won a World Series. He got traded to the Yankees from the San Diego Padres for $31 million on December 6th, 2023.

Yankees to pursue Juan Soto for a longer term

According to reports, the Yankees will negotiate a tough deal with star player Juan Soto. Soto was acquired by the Yankees in a blockbuster deal and they want him in the team for the long term.

Brian Cashman said he has full faith in the player and wants him to stay with the team longer but will have a conversation with him regarding the matter later.

"We recognized when we went into this situation that the odds are that it's a one-year situation before free agency. Certainly, that can change, I guess, but the odds are certainly against that. He's this close to free agency. I don't see too many things stopping him from hitting free agency.

"So we're just looking to see if we collectively can crush it together, have an amazing walk year and [have] him put up the numbers he's capable of putting up with the cast of characters that we're going to surround him with. See if we all can have a good time and then have a conversation thereafter," said Brian Cashman to MLB Network.

Only time will tell if the Yankees will retain Juan Soto.