Report: Phillies are NOT listed as one of the five teams to make Juan Soto an offer

It’s starting to look more and more like the Phillies were never serious players in the Juan Soto Sweepstakes.

While a report from The New York Post’s Jon Heyman last week suggested that John Middleton and company were still hoping to meet with Soto, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale threw cold water on that Monday, noting they haven’t even had a single conversation with Scott Boras, Soto’s agent, to express interest.

John Middleton, the Phillies’ managing partner, didn’t exactly inspire confidence in the team’s chances either. Earlier this month, Middleton acknowledged he believes Soto is leaning toward 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 told The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Conor Smith.

“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.” 

John Middleton doesn’t sound optimistic about the Phillies’ chances in the Juan Soto Sweepstakes >>

Middleton didn’t sound bitter, calling it a smart strategy for Boras to use the Phillies to drive up Soto’s price. But his comments hinted that the front office may already see the writing on the wall.

According to the latest round of reports on Juan Soto, the Phillies are not one of the five teams listed that have made can offer.

Phillies are NOT listed as one of 5 teams to make an offer for Juan Soto:

Juan Soto has offers from 5 teams, source confirms the report by @RandyJMiller.

Boston Red Sox
Los Angeles Dodgers
New York Mets
New York Yankees
Toronto Blue Jays @MLBNetwork

— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) November 26, 2024

Despite all that, it felt reasonable to assume the Phillies would at least meet with Soto and make a pitch for the 26-year-old generational talent, even if their chances were slim.

If Soto ends up signing elsewhere without the Phillies even putting their hat in the ring, it’s going to raise some questions.

Was it a matter of fit? A lack of financial flexibility? Or, perhaps, was Soto’s interest in New York too strong for any other team to make a real push?

For now, it seems like Soto’s next chapter won’t be written in Philadelphia. But if the Phillies truly stayed out of the mix, it will be interesting to see what their reasoning was when the dust settles.

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