Yankees’ pivot plan after losing Juan Soto evaluated by MLB insider

Juan Soto’s shift from the Bronx to Queens during the offseason met with several speculations, criticisms, and wishes. Months after his historic 15-year $765 million contract signing, the New York Mets will face off against the New York Yankees in the weekend Subway Series.

The cheers and jeers will undoubtedly fill the Yankee Stadium as their once-beloved superstar, Juan Soto, will make his appearance. It’ll be the first time Soto walks into the Bronx since his multi-million dollar signing.

In Thursday's episode of the New York Post Sports discussion, insiders Jon Heyman and Joel Sherman talked about the pinstripes' bold move in the offseason right after losing Soto to the rivals. The team was prepared for the deal to go both ways, and didn’t lose chances to lock in star players in Soto’s absence.

Sherman commented on how the Yankees might not have performed well had they locked in Soto instead of getting Max Fried. The pitcher has been phenomenal for the Yankees in terms of their performance score.

“...if the Yankees had Soto but didn’t have Fried this year, considering that Cole went down, Gil went down, Schmidt, and then Stroman went down. I just don’t think they’d be as good,” Joel Sherman said [4:35 - 4:50].

The injury bug bit most of the Yankees' star players like Gerrit Cole, Luis Gil, Marcus Stroman, and Clarke Schmidt. Had they not signed Fried, their pitching depth would have suffered greatly.

Sherman further went on to say that “the Yankees are better short and long term” with the current players in rotation. Jon Heyman also praised Paul Goldschmidt for his dominant outing this year.

Amidst all the anticipation and noise for the Yankees vs. Mets game, Soto has made it clear that his focus will remain solely on the game.

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Juan Soto ready to tackle 50,000 noises at Yankee Stadium

Juan Soto [Source: Imagn]

Juan Soto knows very well the kind of reception he’ll get from the moment he steps foot in the Yankee Stadium. He admitted that while there will be boos, he is focused on the game and will do whatever it takes to win it.

"It's going to be 50,000 against one," Juan Soto said. "They're going to try to get on me, you know. It's part of it. Whatever they do, they have a right to do it."

There were even rumors of him not adjusting to his new team, but the superstar outfielder put all the noise to rest in recent comments. He said that he is very happy with his decision and is excited to be at Queens for the next few years.