The New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers will meet in Game 1 of the World Series Friday night, marking the 12th time the two franchises will have opposed each other for Major League Baseball’s championship. The Yankees will be depending on the slugging of superstars Aaron Judge and Juan Soto along with Giancarlo Stanton to compete against the hot-hitting Dodgers.
Soto helped clinch the Yankees’ spot in the World Series when he hammered a three-run home run in the top of the 10th inning in Game 6 of the American League Championship Series. Soto is scheduled to become a free agent once the World Series concludes.
Judge, the Yankees captain who was a free agent in last year’s offseason, says he has not discussed the subject with Soto. However, he believes that Soto will weigh the factors carefully at the appropriate moment.
“When the time comes and this is all over, he’ll make the right decision,” Judge said.
There was speculation at the end of the 2023 season that Judge would leave the Yankees and take his talent to the West Coast. The San Francisco Giants made a substantial offer to Judge, but he ended up signing a nine-year, $360 million contract with the Bronx Bombers.
There is significant speculation that the next contract Soto signs will be in a similar neighborhood for term, but the money may be even higher than the amount Judge received from the Yankees.
Soto has had excellent year for the Yankees
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The 25-year-old Soto is considered one of the most dangerous and talented offensive players in Major League Baseball. He had a huge season in New York, slashing .288/.419/.569 while blasting a career-best 41 home runs and driving in 109 runs. He is also an excellent outfielder with a tremendous arm.
Soto will get some votes in the Most Valuable Player race in the American League, but he is not likely to overcome Judge. The huge centerfielder had another eye-opening season as he slashed .322/.458/.701 while leading the American League with 58 home runs and driving in a career-best 144 runs.
If the Yankees get production from Aaron Judge and Soto, and Stanton can also demonstrate the power he had against the Guardians, the Yankees should have an excellent chance on winning the World Series for the 9th time in their 12 meetings with the Dodgers. Stanton blasted four home runs against the Guardians in the ALCS.
The Dodgers have plenty of firepower themselves, and the trio of Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman are not going to take a backseat to their Yankees counterparts.
Steve Silverman has been covering the NFL for more than 35 years, and his writing has appeared in ESPN Magazine, Bleacher Report, CBS Sports, Pro Football Weekly, and Forbes.com. He has written 10 books, including “Who’s Better, Who’s Best in the NFL.”