Juan Soto might not be the face of the New York Yankees, but look at what he did for them. The team that always fell short of reaching the World Series since 2009 made it there. Even though a win was far from their reach! Any Yankee fan or baseball fan, in fact, would think that the Bronx team would give an arm and a leg for Juan Soto, right? Anything to convince him to play in pinstripes for 15 years, get them to greater heights. But well, it’s turning out to be a rather different affair.

Owner of the Yankees, Hal Steinbrenner, was asked how the meeting with Soto in California went, and he answered, “I don’t know,” leaving many bewildered. And it seems like Aaron Judge has taken a page from the same book! When asked about Soto and free agency, Judge mentioned, “I think the best thing is to give those guys space.” Judge also, when recently asked about Soto possibly getting paid more than him, said he wasn’t concerned. These are shocking answers coming from the face of the franchise. Former MLB pro Erik Kratz weighed in on Judge’s approach to Soto, saying if he were in the Yank captain’s position, he would hound Soto to stay.

Kratz gives two reasons for Aaron Judge’s stance

Erik Kratz, speaking in Foul Territory, offered his thoughts on why he thought Aaron Judge didn’t take a hands-on approach to convince Juan Soto. He gave two possibilities behind it. The first is that Judge is simply treating Soto the way he wanted to be treated two years back in his free agency. Kratz recalls the incident when Judge made it clear at that time that all he needed was “family, faith, and money.” In that light, Judge might be giving Soto the same freedom to choose without pressure.

However, Eric Kratz also gave another possibility, and that’s simply that Judge and Soto didn’t really connect in the last year.“Maybe they didn’t connect over the year. If somebody is my boy, I am hounding him to stay with my team,” Kratz justified by saying this. If Judge and Juan Soto were indeed close, Judge would try to talk Soto out of even looking at other teams.

It’s also surprising, given that most thought a brotherhood relationship was prevalent between the two players. Mostly because Judge and Soto were even being compared to Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig at a point. But it seems like bro-ship might have been only till the mound.

Juan Soto might not be looking for a Yankees sales pitch

Juan Soto is most likely not looking for someone or Aaron Judge to be actively persuading him to stay with the New York Yankees, says Erik Kratz. He pointed out that sometimes when players only come in for a season, they don’t form that connection and bond. “I would like somebody to sell me on staying with the team, but I also don’t think that’s what Soto is looking for,” Kratz mentioned. Moreover, we can’t deny that Soto has a lot of options!

Juan Soto right now may be confused about where exactly he wants to go. He has seven teams who are apparently in the mix to clinch him. From the Yankees to the LA Dodgers to the Boston Red Sox, and, of course, the New York Mets. Moreover, Steve Cohen, the Mets owner, is ready to shell out more than anyone or any team.

We mean, he is the richest MLB team owner, so we didn’t expect less! So Juan Soto is in a prime position to choose where he wants to go, and waiting for someone to convince him is not what he would like, possibly. And it’s something even Judge would know, hence the silence. It remains to see if Hal Steinbrenner can win this race to Soto or not. Let us know what you think in the comments below.