MLB insiders throw cold water on Dodgers' Juan Soto pursuit

Every free agent signing this offseason will pale in comparison to whatever's in store for Juan Soto, who's expected to make at least $500 million over a 10+ year deal. As soon as the Yankees had officially lost the World Series, Soto was inundated with questions about his free agency. He played it coy, saying that he appreciated his time in New York but would listen to any team that wanted to speak to him.

Reportedly, the Mets have already jumped on him and are being aggressive in their offers, and it's a given that the Yankees will try to keep him as well. Only one other team has been mentioned as even having the capital to afford him, and that is the Dodgers.

Adding Soto would officially make the Dodgers the most hated team in baseball and send their already-high World Series odds in 2025 skyrocketing even further. Teoscar Hernández did just become a free agent, pending his decision on the qualifying offer the Dodgers extended to him, so it's possible they could be looking for another left fielder.

After the Dodgers won the World Series, Jon Heyman wrote that the Dodgers would be in on the Soto chase. However, during an appearance on The Michael Kay Show, Jeff Passan was quick to shut that down with a simple "nope." Jim Bowden, in his free agent predictions for The Athletic, also guessed the Dodgers would re-sign Hernández to go back to left field instead (subscription required).

Dodgers fans shouldn't get their hopes up about Juan Soto coming to LA in free agency

The general vibe seems to be that Soto will stay in New York as either a Yankee or Met, and that the Dodgers will re-sign Hernández if he rejects the qualifying offer, which is sort of the way it should be. Hernández has more than earned a spot in LA again, and the Mets will have more money (well, even more than they usually do) after finally freeing themselves of Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander's contracts.

Sure, Shohei Ohtani willingly deferred over 97% of his money so that the Dodgers could build around him, but they could get Hernández back for much cheaper than Soto and then focus their energies on pursuing Willy Adames knowing that the outfield is settled. The Dodgers also don't like to deal with Soto's agent Scott Boras when it comes to high-priced free agents, which no one can really blame them for.

The Dodgers should get Hernández back and let Soto go back to the Yankees or join the Mets. They already proved they don't need Soto to win the World Series.