Harry How. Getty Images.

It was really tiring following the Juan Soto competition, but not quite as expected. Neither Soto nor his agent Scott Boras have done anything wrong so far. It is December 4th and we are nearing the end of these negotiations. Totally normal for a major offseason baseball free agent. In fact, if this is done before the Winter Meetings, I would say it will be done much quicker than I ever imagined. Remember how late the Blake Snell, Jordan Montgomery and Matt Chapman deals were done last year? This is child’s play compared to this shit. The difference is that we’re dealing with a generational superstar whose impending decision will shape the rest of free agency. That is the power he possesses. It’s not often that a player of his pedigree and caliber hits the market at 26 years old and realizes how difficult it can be to get the right service years to reach free agency. You have to make your debut as a teenager, be a beast from the jump, avoid injuries and resist the temptation to take a big deal while either getting paid the league minimum or in your arb years. Soto has checked all the boxes and now has the honor of deciding who will give him the biggest contract in baseball history. Because he is such a big deal, his team knows they need to get this done quickly as his decision will impact how every other team approaches their offseason. Nobody moves in front of Juan unless you’re Blake Snell and you get a huge contract from the Dodgers because they’re the Dodgers. Other than that, it’s a big delay.

The stressful part of all of this that I mentioned above is the people on Twitter who can’t wait to spread the news. They’re nobodies who really have nothing to lose if they’re wrong, so they figure why not throw something out there. Some of these people are “beat writers” who are attached to teams but really don’t have a clue. Randy Miller, I’m talking about you. It seems like every hour I go online I see a new report that people are following that is not at all valid.

“The Red Sox have finalized a deal, announcement soon.”

“The Mets will spend $50 million more than anyone else.”

“The Yankees are out, they won’t offer more than $550 million”

“The Savanah Bananas have taken Juan’s family hostage and will not let them leave unless he signs a lifetime contract.”

“The Blue Jays will not give up and will have the highest bid”

It doesn’t end.

For me it’s Jeff Passan, Jack Curry and a little bit of Ken Rosenthal when it comes to baseball news. Passan is the head of everything. His word means everything. Curry always had the inside scoop on the Yankees and never spewed nonsense. Cashman is in his ear. So if you’re hearing it from him, it might as well be Brian standing in front of a microphone telling you what’s happening. Rosenthal is of course also there. Everyone else is irrelevant to me when it comes to Juan’s decision.

With that said, let’s talk about what we know and try to make sense of it all. Last offseason, Shohei Ohtani signed a record-breaking 10-year, $700 million contract with the Dodgers, deferring almost the entire contract until his retirement. The current value of this deal was $460 million, and I think it goes without saying that Soto will easily surpass that number. The question remains whether it will exceed the 700 plateau. Considering we’re dealing with Scott Boras’ ego, I’d say there’s a very good chance of that happening.

Ken Rosenthal reported last night that current bids from rival teams have all exceeded the $600 million mark. Now I can admit that this is not breaking news. I’ve been holding off on blogging updates because there hasn’t been too much to get into yet. However, it looks like we are entering the endgame.

The clubs known to be most serious about Soto are the New York Mets, New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers. The two people briefed on the negotiations said all remaining rivals had made offers over $600 million.

The industry expects Soto to make his decision by the end of the winter meetings, which begin Sunday in Dallas, and possibly even before the meetings begin. But Boras said he doesn’t expect an “immediate” decision.

The paragraph above is information gathered from Ken’s sources as well as Scott Boras himself at Blake Snell’s Dodger press conference yesterday. Final bids appear to be on the way and a decision is imminent, but nothing yet. The scariest thing about this time is that the announcement could happen at any moment. For someone who typically stays up until 2 a.m. and doesn’t exactly wake up at the crack of dawn, this time of year is a nightmare. You want to be awake when this shit happens. Hell, two years ago I fell to my knees in my living room during the Judge circus when Heyman’s “Arson Judge to the Giants” tweet came in. I was sleeping soundly in the morning when it was announced that he was staying with the Yankees. It’s just scary to try to rest even a little when something so big is about to happen. I have a wedding on Saturday and I know this shit will drop at the first dance. I must be such an asshole, right?

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So what do we know outside of Ken’s report above? Not much more, unless you want to trick your brain into believing the wildcard reports. If you want to take the news that way, I can’t stop you, but it’s really best to wait until the big guns drop the news before you lose your mind.

This is how my stupid brain analyzes this shitstorm. Soto is aiming for record money. The Yankees, Mets, Red Sox, Dodgers and Blue Jays are the teams in the running. Personally, I’ve ruled out the Blue Jays in my head, but you can keep them alive if you want. They would have to make an offer worth billions to get him to play in Canada. If he goes there, I’ll just laugh. I’d like to think the Dodgers won’t get Soto, but why would I? Shohei’s deferment deal and global revenue stream make anything possible in this sick world we live in. I literally can never give up on her. The Red Sox seem legitimately serious, but is that serious enough to match what the New York teams have to offer? I expect they’ll peak at some point and turn to top-notch pitching (Fried), but if there’s ever a way for John Henry to get the fans back on his side, it’s to get New York’s Juan Soto Stealing York. Jack Curry spoke during the YES Network’s Hot Stove show on Monday and expressed great confidence in the Yankees’ efforts to retain Soto. He wouldn’t talk like that if they hit the $550 million mark, as Randy Miller reported.

The Yankees believe they have given him the priority he deserves and will do everything they can to keep him. Undoubtedly encouraging since many doubted Hal’s willpower to spend money, but the only problem is that Steve Cohen has bottomless pockets and doesn’t care about luxury taxes. He wants to make a statement here and outdo the evil empire. If he gets his man, he can make the Mets a force to be reckoned with.

It seems like Soto has all of these offers at a level where it’s now just up to him to decide where he really wants to be.

In my perfect world, Soto loved being a Yankee and just wanted them to reach a certain offer number. I’m not saying he’s getting a discount, but rather that he always wanted to stay and just needed the Yankees to play with Cohen. Boras uses the Mets and everyone else to drive up Hal’s offer, and they get it at 15 years and $675 million. Something like that. If it’s all about top dollar, he’s a Met, based solely on the fact that Cohen is a weirdo who does this as a hobby and not for financial gain.

Hopefully we’ll have our answer by the end of the week. Maybe not in the middle of the night or while I’m at this wedding? You just know that with my luck it will come on Saturday. Everyone is preparing.