Red Sox Insider Details ‘Palpable Fear’ Among Juan Soto Suitors

A few recent reports indicated the New York Yankees were falling behind in the Juan Soto sweepstakes.

Well, it sounds like the powers that be in the Bronx aren’t going to allow that to happen.

The New York Post’s Jon Heyman on Saturday night reported the Yankees, along with the Mets, boosted their respective Soto offers north of $700 million in total value. Steve Cohen’s club reportedly is the favorite to win the Soto sweepstakes, but other teams involved apparently suspect the Yankees won’t go down without a knockdown-dragout.

“The industry has long believed the Mets would make a Godfather offer to land Soto no matter what it takes,” MassLive’s Chris Cotillo wrote in a column published Sunday. “But there’s palpable fear among interested teams Sunday that the Yankees might also be in that same boat. The Yankees, of course, offer Soto something the other interested teams (the Red Sox, Mets, Blue Jays and Dodgers) can’t: familiarity and comfort after a successful first year in the Bronx.”

The Yankees might have other factors working in their favor, too. Heyman believes Aaron Boone’s bunch could really benefit from Aaron Judge, whose lineup presence and selfless leadership reportedly are admired by Soto.

Soto proved to be a key piece in helping the Yankees halt their 14-season American League pennant drought. So, it’s not difficult to understand why the club is so keen on keeping him in pinstripes.