LOS ANGELES — The Nationals were said to be very disappointed superstar hitter Juan Soto rejected their record $440 million, 15-year bid as their people suggested to folks they felt they had a legitimate chance to lock him up. Meanwhile, Soto’s camp was also upset as they believe the offer only looked impressive while containing nowhere near the right per-year salary.
The Nats did put out a big overall number but disregarded one other number Soto’s camp thought was important. Soto’s agent Scott Boras tried to use Max Scherzer’s $43.3 million salary as a comp. In response, the Nats made it clear in discussions they thought Scherzer’s three-year deal was irrelevant.
Nats GM Mike Rizzo did take the opportunity, when Boras brought up the Scherzer salary, to say something along the lines of, “OK, we will give Soto the Scherzer deal.” In other words, they would be willing to give Soto exactly $43.3 million for exactly three years.
Rizzo was only making a point. Of course, with Soto being 23, he and Boras weren’t about to take a relatively short-term deal for that rare superstar who will be free at age 25/26.
Boras is telling folks Scherzer’s salary is a fair comp, though, and that Soto shouldn’t receive an average of $29.3 million (or $14 million less than Scherzer) over the term, nor an average $26.8 million over the first nine years of the deal ($16.5 million less).
With Juan Soto unable to reach a deal with Washington, his team is opening up for business to place the superstar on the trade market. AP Photo/Nick Wass
Scott Boras tried to use Mets pitcher Max Scherzer as a comparison when trying to break a deal for Juan Soto. AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File
Boras also has invoked Alex Rodriguez as the last superstar due to be a free agent at age 25/26, and how as a free agent A-Rod received 40 percent more than the highest previous salary, which at the time was $25.2 million a season to top Kevin Brown’s previous high of $15 million. (Brown, like Scherzer, was an older star pitcher, but fairly, Brown wasn’t quite the pitcher Scherzer is.)
A-Rod set the record at $252 million which at the time was double the value of the U.S. sports record deal of $126 million for Kevin Garnett. It’s clear Boras sees Soto in that category. Remember the original estimated ask of $500 million from a year ago. That may wind up being conservative as an ask.
While the deal, on its surface, seems interesting, and represents a record, one rival executive agrees with Boras, whose camp sees this as an attempt by the Nats to raise their franchise value at a time the team is for sale by locking up their biggest asset. Folks close to that situation do expect the team to be sold in coming months, and for $2 billion-plus, maybe even $3 billion.
“It’s a bad deal for [Soto],” the rival executive said. “It’s backloaded, so it’s not even worth 29 million a year, more like 27. It’s a typical Nats deal. If I were him, I would not do this deal either.”
The Nats maintain that it’s not “backloaded,” but only that the salaries gradually rise, from $26 million to $28 million to $30 million and eventually to $40 million and that the deal is still worth the full $440 million.
