The New York Yankees have raised the stakes in the Juan Soto sweepstakes after reportedly kickstarting the second round of bidding for the superstar outfielder.

According to the New York Post’s Jon Heyman, the Yankees have raised their initial offer to Soto, who is reportedly looking to receive a 15-year deal in free agency. The New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox, and Toronto Blue Jays are additionally still in the mix for the 26-year-old, with the winning bid for his talents expected to reach upwards of $600 million.

Dodgers two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani actively stands as the highest-paid player in MLB at $700 million, though the large majority of his earnings are being deferred interest-free. Soto, meanwhile, is believed to have no interest in inking a short-term contract that’d net him a record-breaking salary in the near future.

“Though a short deal at a super-high annual salary could make some sense, since he would still become a free agent again in his 20s, word is out that such a deal doesn’t interest him, especially since he’s expected to receive opt-outs in any long deal,” Heyman wrote.

While appearing on MLB Tonight, insider Mark Feinsand provided more context regarding Heyman’s report, confirming that the initial round of offers for Soto has seemingly come and gone. “The way this process seems to be working is there was an initial round of offers that were supposed to come in pre-Thanksgiving, they did,” he began.

“But that just gives Soto and Scott Boras an idea of where these teams stand, how serious they are, and then they’re going to come back and there will be another round. The Yankees have apparently already gone to that second round.”

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Juan Soto is drawing interest from the New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays

Juan Soto is drawing interest from the New York Mets, Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays ( 

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While the Yankees have clearly shown great interest in retaining Soto following a season in which he slashed .288/.419/.569 with 41 home runs and 109 RBIs, Feinsand argued that the Mets currently have the best shot to land him given owner Steve Cohen’s deep pockets.

“Look, the Yankees have made it clear they want Soto back. They’re planning on doing what they can to try to retain him. I think the biggest threat to them is the Mets,” he said.

“Steve Cohen has more money than everybody else in baseball, and if he sets his sights on Juan Soto, he can do something that no other owner can, which is spend whatever he wants and not blink when doing so. So I still think it’s going to come down to the Yankees and Mets.

“The Red Sox, the Blue Jays are still in it. The Dodgers are still in it to some extent, although after spending this money on [Blake] Snell, I’d be surprised if they were really going to be in the mix for Soto.”