That would be tampering, covered under rule 3k “…there shall be no negotiations or dealings respecting employment…between any player…and any Major League Club other than the Club with which the player is under contract.”
To do what that person was suggesting, the Yankees would have to have had the Padres negotiate a contract extension with Soto/Boras, and then finalize the deal with the Padres. The feasibility of that seems dubious to impossible I think.
Unless it’s changed in one of the newer CBAs, teams could be given permission to attempt an extension, and a window of time (for example, 72 hours) to be able to get an extension done.
For example, when Mookie Betts was traded from Boston to Los Angeles, many people thought that Boston would allow LA the chance to extend Betts. Boston ended up not allowing the window, but it was something that could have happened.
Again, though, this was 4 years ago. Something certainly could have changed since then.
Interesting. I wonder why that wasn’t done (assuming it’s still allowed). Does it then prevent the Padres from entertaining offers from other teams during that period?
Ohtani is getting dumped on for his reps opting to keep deal negotiations private.
The article is a good example of sportswriters flaming out because they don’t get juicy stuff to write about, and confusing their convenience with the public’s right to know.
The Yankees may or may not get a satisfactory one-year rental out of Alex Verdugo, but their glomming onto ex-Red Sox players hasn’t turned out too well in recent times (exhibit A: Franchy Cordero).
Losing King hurts a bit, but of course worth it.
I’m not sure the Yankees have any long term plans for Soto. This may be a one shot stab at the title. If so, I expect a frontline starting pitcher signing, too.
I feel bad about losing Higasioka, but with Austin Wells and Trevino (if he comes back) he really doesn’t fit any more. Soto may be a rental, and if it brings a title to the Bronx, I’m fine with it.
Thanks that’s what I figured. Boras doesn’t do extensions anyway.
King was due to be in the rotation. With a lot of guys coming back from injury at some point the rotation is murky to say the least. We know who #1 is.
Without Higgy they have 5 catchers on the 40 man roster (with only 35 on it currently). Higgy is the wrong side of 30, has a good glove but not as good as Trevino. They are pretty flush with catchers even though they don’t have a big offensive threat there yet. I would not be surprised if one of those 5 get dealt before next season.
Franchy was a low risk pick up from the trash heap.
Wade Boggs. Johnny Damon. Roger Clemens. Babe Ruth.
For sure a mixed bag (Ellsbury, Youk, that second baseman guy) but I was hoping they were flipping Verdugo in the Soto deal.
Yeah, the operative word is recent.
Ellsbury and Youkilis are not exactly names that will reverberate through Yankee annals.
I guess I’m missing whatever point you’re trying to make. Ellsbury was still on the books in 2021. Cordero played in 24 games last season. He was a blip.
And he came from the Orioles after they dumped him.
The Verdugo trade was only the eighth between the two teams in the expansion era. I think both sides are still haunted by the ghost of Babe Ruth. Even one year of Verdugo is a risk. If he has his career year in 2024, Boston fans will storm the castle. If Fitts becomes a decent MLB starter, Yankee fans will burn Cashman in effigy.
Ohtani to the Bluejays? That’s a surprise.
So Ohtani doesn’t prioritize winning. Good to know.
Of course, that would be true wherever he went among his Top 3 choices.
Have fun in the Great White North. Every time you stomp the Yankees, an Angel gets signed to a better team. 
Well, RickJay will be happy.
If Ohtani would simply have signed with the Dodgers in 2017 and stuck with them for, say, a 13-year long career, he could have had multiple World Series titles and even better stats. The guy doesn’t make sense…
It isn’t a done deal yet. There’s a lot of backtracking going on from “sources.”
Right now, I’m happy to be stuck with Giancarlo Stanton’s contract. Otherwise, the Yankees might have gone after Ohtani. I love the guy, but the time to sign him was 2018. This contract might well be a disaster. I’m hoping not, because he’s great for the game and fun to watch.
ETA: The contract won’t be a financial disaster; whoever signs him will make their money back. The back-end might be a bummer for the fans, though, and a significant strain on payroll.
And, the answer is “Dodgers.” 10 years, $700 million.
So the first thing everyone thought would happen, happened.