Big Moves in the MLB

Over the past week, the MLB has been flipped upside down after the move of two of the league’s biggest stars. One of them hit close home as the hometown Yankees made a splash, greatly improving their chances of raising a 28th world series trophy. 

After much negotiation, the New York Yankees traded for three-time all star and World Series Champion Juan Soto. Soto, one of the best young hitters in the MLB, was traded from the San Diego Padres. The Padres, a team that needed to trade Soto due to salary cap issues, got a haul in return that consisted of 4 young pitchers and catcher Kyler Higashioka. Mixed emotions were felt throughout the Yankee fanbase as some believe the return for Soto was too much for the all star slugger. On the other hand, people like Ethan Saintjean, sophomore at Hills West, think “the trade is great and exactly what Yankee fans have been waiting for as the team is now contenders for a World Series for the foreseeable future”. 

Soto’s move to New York was not the biggest move over the last 7 days as the arguably best player in the MLB has signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers. Shohei Ohtani signed a 10 year, $700 million dollar contract, by far the largest contract in professional sports. Ohtani has been in the league for 6 years, but the slugger and pitcher has already won 2 AL MVPs. The bidding war for the yearly MVP candidate was obviously a contentious one as both New York teams, Yankees and Mets, were just two of the boys aiming for the Japanese superstar. 

The MLB Free Agency period is just getting underway as there are a lot more moves expected to happen within the next few weeks. Don’t be surprised if the hometown teams continue to make moves to improve their chances at a World Series.