The barrier of exorbitant contracts in Major League Baseball that were broken by Shohei Ohtani and Juan Soto could be taken as a target in the coming years and the reference of many talented players when entering free agency, and there are already some prospects who aim to surpass the figure.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was set to compete next offseason, but he opted to take the contract extension offer from the Toronto Blue Jays for $500 million and 13 years, so Soto’s record of $765 million and 15 years could stand at least in the next winter market, in which Kyle Tucker looks set to be the most sought-after star, but not enough to surpass the mark of the Dominican outfielder for the New York Mets.
However, according to ESPN‘sJeff Passan, there are two youngsters with the potential to aspire to negotiate a contract that exceeds the record set by Soto, and they are Elly de la Cruz of the Cincinnati Reds and Gunnar Henderson of the Baltimore Orioles.
Elly de la Cruz and Gunnar Henderson, the successors to Juan Soto
Shortstop Elly de la Cruz and third baseman Gunnar Henderson shared the cover of the popular video game MLB The Show 25 with pitcher Paul Skenes, and they are certainly in the spotlight as Major League Baseball prospects.
Regarding the Dominican De la Cruz, who has an $800,000-a-year contract with Cincinnati, Passan revealed that “several executives mentioned the Reds star as a possible successor to Soto” and predicted that when the time comes he could aspire to get a $500 million contract.
“Even if he gets a 13-year contract, De La Cruz would need an average salary of almost $59 million a year to surpass Soto’s contract. Is it possible? Sure. De la Cruz has that talent. But he hasn’t been outstanding, hitting .252/.328/.444 in his career,” Passan commented.
On the other hand, Passan mentioned that Gunnar Henderson“was the player mentioned by all the executives as the best option to beat Soto”, and for now he is on track to build a career at 23 years of age, having already been chosen as the American League Rookie of the Year and has the talent to compete with Elly de la Cruz to be the successors of the Mets star.
“Henderson debuted at 21 and will become a free agent after the 2028 season at 27. He plays a far more important position than Soto’s right field, and even if Henderson eventually moves to third base, the positional advantage will remain,” Passan said, adding: “Henderson needs more years of consistent quality before he can aspire to $600 million, let alone $765 million.”
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