C-Mac urges fans to take no stock in anything Juan Soto says about free agency: 'Coached player'
Juan Soto discussed his upcoming free agency after Wednesday’s season-ending loss to the Dodgers in game five of the World Series, and the process of fans clinging to every word out of the superstar’s mouth has officially begun.
Soto talked about every team in the league having an equal chance to make their pitches, and shot down the idea that he would prefer to play in New York, whether it be with the Yankees or the Mets. Chris McMonigle, looking back to Aaron Judge’s anticipated free agency two years ago, said it would be wise to not look into anything Soto says between now and whenever he signs.
“We know that’s not true, because he said he wants to go to a winning team,” C-Mac said in response to Soto saying that no team has an advantage this winter. “If the White Sox pony up $700 million, I don’t think he’s going to Chicago.
“That is a coached player...he intends to go out in free agency and intends to enjoy it, much like Judge did. Judge was a little more ‘I want to be here,’ but he spoke the same kind of stuff, and we had no idea...now he’s doing interviews saying ‘It was always New York.’”
Judge is a star that played the free agency tour perfectly, keeping the Yankees in the dark about his true preferences until Hal Steinbrenner called him himself amid rumors that the Padres were making a record offer. So, C-Mac learned his lesson from that experience, and won’t put any weight on anything Soto says publicly.
“He’s not gonna allow us to know what he’s thinking,” C-Mac said. “He’s not gonna make any other team think it’s an uphill battle. He knows exactly what to say. He’s been coached by his leadership group and his agent. He’s not gonna give any leanings in any way, shape, or form.
“There is nothing he could have said that would make me feel any different about the Yankees’ chances in retaining him. Nothing.”
