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Juan Soto is one of the best baseball players in the world. So are some of his counterparts from the Dominican Republic, which is why they were the favorite to win the World Baseball Classic last year. In stunning fashion, they were upset by Puerto Rico.
The Dominican side was expected to face off with the United States, another powerhouse on the global baseball scene, but fell well short of that goal in spite of loads of talent.
After the upset, which was one of the tournament's best and most exciting games, Soto said via MLB.com:
“At the end of the day, one team has to win and another has to lose. We came here with the right mentality, but the result just didn’t go our way. They played good baseball and sometimes you have to tip your cap and recognize what they did.”
It was a back and forth contest that ultimately knocked the Dominican Republic out despite a late home run from Soto in a valiant effort to stave off elimination. Unfortunately, they fell short and had to tip their cap, as Soto said.
The Dominican team had stars like Soto, Rafael Devers, Manny Machado, Wander Franco, Eloy Jiminez, Cristian Javier and more, but they were upset and didn't make it to the end.
Juan Soto not looking too far ahead
Juan Soto is a free agent in this year's class. After he plays this season, he will be a free agent and can sign wherever he wants. It's expected that he will ultimately sign for a massive, potentially $400 million deal.
The New York Yankees traded for Soto this offseason, but they knew he was unlikely to sign an extension. Scott Boras clients almost always test the market, and GM Brian Cashman admitted that he expected as much.
Soto is not looking ahead at that, though. He is excited for Spring Training and remains laser-focused on the task at hand. What he will sign for and where remains to be seen, but he's not concerned with it at the moment.
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