A New Era of Hope
There are a few things New Yorkers love to talk about. Directions. New places to eat. And, of course, the Yankees. Recently, The Bronx Bombers took on the Los Angeles Dodgers in the Fall Classic. With the Yankees leading 5-0 in the fifth game and a dozen outs from sending the game back to LA, fate conspired against them, and the Boys in Blue celebrated their win at Yankee Stadium. However, there may be bright spots in an otherwise dreary winter, as the Yankees are known and feared for their willingness to spend big and do whatever it takes to prepare for the next season. This past December, the New York Yankees acquired all-star outfielder Juan Soto from the San Diego Padres. Soto has quickly established himself as one of the best hitters in baseball for the short time he’s been in the league and is poised for many successful years to come. During the 2024 season, he recorded 41 home runs and 109 RBIs, hitting for a .288 batting average after being paired with perennial all-star and Yankees captain Aaron Judge. The Yankees won their division and made their first trip to the World Series in 15 years.
Sam Chestman, a junior who is on the varsity baseball team, offered his thoughts on Soto: “It’s been three years in a row with only Judge, Judge is the only good player. Every year, same old, same out, but finally, they got a really big name in Juan Soto, and made the World Series.” While the Yankees are no strangers to the Postseason, missing the playoffs only once in the past eight years, the Soto and Judge combination helped them capture their first pennant in more than a decade.
During their postseason run, the Bronx Bombers faced some extraordinary players, with The Kansas City Royals and Cleveland Guardians standing between them and a trip to the series. The Guardians’ roster contains the best relief pitcher in the game: Emmanuel Clase, a nominee for the Cy Young of the Year award. The Guardians finished the regular season with the second-best record in the American League, closely following the Yankees in first place. Coach Cody, Head Coach of Riverdale’s varsity baseball team and former ball player himself, provided some critical information about why the Guardians are such a difficult team to beat: “Cleveland is definitely on paper a great team. [Cleveland] should have given the Yanks more of a fight than they ended up giving them just because of their bullpen. And you gotta give credit to the Yankees for beating, you know, Emmanuel Clase and some of their other big bullpen arms… they just got cold at the wrong time.”
Soto had the best performance out of all the Yankee players in the Postseason, but he is now exploring free agency. He is rumored to have received offers that would be the largest contracts in sports history, nearing a whopping 700 million dollar minimum for the star. “Go all in on Soto…” said Sarah Stark, a ninth grader at Riverdale. “He’s a generational talent. If you let him get away, it’s a slippery slope. It’s a lot of money to give away for what he’s seeking. Rumors of a $700 million contract for 15 years… it’s not nothing.
But if you get let him get away the fanbase would be a little upset with that.” Five teams, including the Yankees, are now looking at Soto. The New York Mets are willing to spend extreme amounts of cash to get Soto, as are the Los Angeles Dodgers, the Boston Red Sox, and the Toronto Blue Jays. Will the Yankees resign Juan Soto and return to the World Series? Only time will tell. If they do, the Yankees may find themselves battling their former star on the biggest stage.
