Multiple reports late Monday night indicated that Juan Soto currently has five offers in free agency, none of which are from the Phillies.
Randy Miller of NJ Advance Media was the first to report that Soto's agent Scott Boras received offers from the incumbent New York Yankees, along with the Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays, Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets.
MLB.com's Jon Morosi confirmed the report.
Increasingly, it feels like the Phillies were never a real contender for Soto. Despite a report last week from The New York Post's Jon Heyman that the Phillies were still hoping to meet with Soto, USA Today's Bob Nightengale wrote Monday morning that "the Phillies haven't had a single conversation with Boras to express interest in Soto."
Phillies 'Haven't Had a Single Conversation' With Scott Boras About Juan Soto, Per Report
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Managing partner John Middleton did admit earlier this month that he believes Soto is most likely to sign with one of the two New York teams.
"I'm afraid Juan Soto wants to be in New York, and I don't mind being a stalking horse, " Middleton said, according to Conor Smith of The Philadelphia Inquirer.
"At some point, if Dave and I get that feeling, we'll probably say 'You know what, we're not going to win this' because we've both been the stalking horse before. And if I were an agent, I would do it too. It's perfectly good strategy. I mean, it's smart. But at the end of the day, I just think he likes New York."
Still, it felt like the Phillies would meet with Soto and put forward an offer for the 26-year-old superstar, even if it was unlikely they would secure his services. If Soto signs elsewhere without the Phillies really having been involved, it will be interesting to hear what the reasoning for that is.
Lucky isn't the right word. But Juan Soto's free agency shows how fortunate the Phillies were with Bryce Harper.
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