Monday afternoon was the deadline for all Major League Baseball teams to submit qualifying offers to players who filed for free agency. The qualifying offer for the 2024-25 offseason was set at one year and $21.05 million — an obvious reject for the most notable free agents like Juan Soto, Corbin Burnes, and Alex Bregman, but at least within the realm of possibility for some to consider.
ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported the list of 13 players who received a qualifying offer. Soto was indeed among the group, and though he technically has until 4pm ET on November 19th to potentially accept it, it is sure to be rejected in an instant. The man is going to get one of the richest contracts in MLB history, so this is just a formality. Because the Yankees extended the qualifying offer, though, that entitles them to some to-be-determined draft-pick compensation if Soto signs elsewhere. That’s cold comfort, to be sure, but it’s part of the current collective bargaining agreement.
Another Yankee who at least had a chance at a qualifying offer was Gleyber Torres. The second baseman has been with New York since debuting in April 2018, and though he had a sluggish start to 2024, he turned on the jets late with a .293/.361/.419 triple slash in 61 games across the second half. Torres struggled at leadoff to begin the year and lost his spot there, but upon returning to that role in mid-August, he found new life as the table-setter for Soto and Aaron Judge.
Maybe you don’t think that Torres would have been quite up to the snuff of a $21.05 million player in 2025. That’s a reasonable stance to take. But the Yankees do need to figure out their infield for next season. Even if they move Jazz Chisholm Jr. back to the keystone to take Torres’ old spot, they would need to figure out a third baseman. DJ LeMahieu is not a viable starter at either place anymore. Bringing Torres back at second would have allowed the status quo in the infield to remain in place, and there’s an argument that this would’ve been fine for owner Hal Steinbrenner at that pricetag.
Unfortunately, the problem for Torres is that Steinbrenner has his eyes on luxury tax penalties, and there’s no AAV split to be had on a one-year, $21.05 million offer. That was probably the deciding factor here, even with other money coming off the books since Soto’s possible free-agent deal is also in play. I personally have little interest in Hal’s luxury tax games, but I’m just explaining how he likely sees it.
This will ultimately be better for Torres’ market at least, and for that, I’m happy for him. Teams have been reluctant in the past to roll the dice on not-quite-stars who have a qualifying offer (and thus draft-pick compensation) attached to them. Now, he can simply go to whoever will have him for the best price. Will it be the Yankees? Probably not — unless Soto signs elsewhere. Then, maybe.
As the ol’ Magic 8 Ball says, ask again later.
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
