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Carroll’s Column: All-Star Slugger Juan Soto acquired by Yankees

Juan Soto crosses home plate after going deep at Yankee Stadium in 2023 regular season - Image Credit: Bill Menzel/Latino Sports

NEW YORK — Now that the ‘Hot Stove’ has finally begun to heat up, Mets and Yankees fans have gotten into quite the back-and-forth banter in what’s coming next for the respective New York baseball franchise they root on and support… 

WFAN drivetime personality, and professed Mets fan, Evan Roberts posted “Rent in the Bronx, but buy in Queens!” on X after learning the Yankees had obtained outfielder Juan Soto from the San Diego Padres in exchange for five players including pitcher Michael King, catcher Kyle Higashioka, and top pitching prospect Drew Thorpe.   

Juan Soto, recipient of 2021 National League LatinoMVP Award – Image Credit: George Napolitano/Latino Sports

Roberts’ quip referred to the fact Soto, who is, as fellow Yankees superstar Aaron Judge stated, “a generational talent,” is only under contract for one more season before he becomes a free agent. Evan is hoping Soto will cross the RFK Bridge a year from now. 

Yankees general manager Brian Cashman knows there are no guarantees when it comes to the future, but after the disappointing 2023 season which led to a ton of internal scrutiny afterwards, you could understand why he told the media, “2024 is the future!” As long as the Yankees stay healthy, and that is a big if, it is hard to think of a more potent 1-2-3 home run punch than Juan Soto, Aaron Judge, and Giancarlo Stanton.      

Aaron Judge, one of the best power hitters in the game – Image Credit: Bill Menzel/Latino Sports

Cashman is obviously hoping a Yankees’ World Series championship in 2024, will not only please Yankees fans and the entire organization, but it will also give an incentive for Soto to remain a Bronx Bomber, the way Aaron Judge did after he tested the waters of free agency in 2022.      

It should be noted it is rare for the Yankees to lose a player to another team who they wanted to retain. The last player whose departure from the Bronx surprised team executives was Robinson Canó joining the Seattle Mariners a decade ago.      

Although he seems to be a throw-in, do not discount the other Padres player who is coming to the Yankees, outfielder Trent Grisham. Mets fans will glumly remember it was Grisham who single handedly destroyed the Amazins in the 2022 National League Wild Card Series with both his bat and his glove.

San Diego Padres Trent Grisham with a RBI single to the outfield extending the Padres lead to 3-0 in Game 3 of 2022 NL Wild Card elimination game at Citi Field – Image Credit: George Napolitano/ Latino Sports

The Mets did not make much news at the baseball winter meetings in Nashville last week, but word filtered out team owner Steve Cohen, and his president of baseball operations, David Stearns flew to Tokyo to meet with pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the 25 year-old Nippon Professional Baseball League star who now wants to play across the Pacific. 

Telegenic veteran relief pitcher Adam Ottavino, currently a free agent, is seeking a career in the media if he is not picked up by an MLB team in 2024. He was a correspondent for ESPN during last week’s winter meetings and has been a regular panelist on SNY’s “Baseball Night in New York.”

Adam Ottavino, on the mound and on your television as a regular panelist on SNY – Image Credit: Simon Lindenblatt/Latino Sports

He was asked by SNY’s Sal Licata if he thought Yamamoto would be impressed by the visit by the Mets brain trust. “I would be impressed if an owner picked up the phone and called me!” he quipped. 

Jim Leyland to be inducted in National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown 

The baseball winter meetings kicked off with the announcement that retired manager Jim Leyland will be inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown this coming July. Few managers have been more revered by both players and the media the way Jim Leyland has. 

I remember asking him when he was managing the Pittsburgh Pirates about the stresses of managing a baseball team. “There is no pressure in losing baseball games. Pressure is when you have to worry about being able to pay your mortgage or feed your family. That is pressure!” he replied. I always liked his sense of perspective. 

Joe Castiglione named recipient for Ford C. Frick Award 

Mets SNY broadcaster, and Flushing native, Gary Cohen will have to wait a little longer to be immortalized in Cooperstown. He was on the ballot for the Ford C. Frick Award for a meritorious baseball broadcasting career, but this year’s recipient was Boston Red Sox voice, Joe Castiglione. New York sports fans may remember his son, Duke Castiglione, who was a Channel 5 sports anchor for years. 

Heisman Trophy Presentation in New York City

The Heisman Trophy has always been an event which takes place in New York City but does not get a lot of buzz from the media or local sports fans. That may be because New York is not a college football town. Nevertheless, being the city which honors the best player in college football is a feather in our town’s cap. This year’s four finalists were quarterbacks Michael Penix, Jr., Bo Nix, Jayden Daniels, and wide receiver Marvin Harrison, Jr. 

2024 Heisman Trophy finalists: quarterbacks Michael Penix, Jr., Bo Nix, Jayden Daniels, and wide receiver Marvin Harrison, Jr. – Image Credit: NCAA

Ohio State University wide receiver Marvin Harrison, Jr., whose namesake dad is in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, was a backup to current Jets wide receiver Garrett Wilson two years ago when both were Buckeyes. Harrison is still in touch with Wilson, but he admits his old teammate is not in a good mood when the topic of the 2023 NFL season is broached. 

Marvin grew up in Philadelphia, and not surprisingly, has been a frequent visitor to New York. I asked him what his favorite thing to do in the Big Apple is, and he quickly replied, “New York has the best shopping in the world!” He chuckled when I told him they would not be happy to hear that at the King of Prussia Mall.

Oregon QB Bo Nix told the media his parents emphasized the importance of higher education. I jokingly asked him if his parents wanted him to go to Ivy League school, and added my alma mater, Columbia University, could really have used him. “Nah, I wasn’t that smart,” he laughed. 

Nix’s counterpart up I-5 in the Pacific Northwest, Washington’s Michael Penix, Jr., admitted he follows the NFL, and is aware the New York Jets will be in the market for a passer when the 2024 draft takes place at the end of April. Michael grew up in Tampa, started his college career at the University of Indiana, before transferring to the University of Washington. I asked which climate of those three places he preferred. He quickly responded “Florida!” However, when he saw a University of Washington official standing nearby, he quickly added, “But I like Seattle, too!’

When Brian Kelly left Notre Dame to become the head football coach at Louisiana State University, he sounded as if he was trying to impersonate LSU alum James Carville at his first campus pep rally in Baton Rouge. The only problem was Kelly was born and raised in Massachusetts, and his attempt to quickly blend into his new surroundings came off as comical. I asked his QB, Jayden Daniels, who was named the 2024 Heisman Trophy winner if Kelly still tries to speak with a southern drawl. “I have not heard him speak that way,” he told me. 

I asked the four finalists about the best financial advice they have received from their agents. “Not all money is good money,” Jayden Daniels replied. The other three players nodded in agreement about the need to be selective with whom you do business. Bo Nix quickly replied, “Pay your taxes!” and added how much he trusts his CPA.

Two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani signs with Dodgers for $700 million

After all the hype, Shohei Ohtani signed last Saturday with the Los Angeles Dodgers who were always the prohibitive favorite to land him. There was baseless speculation last week Ohtani was giving strong consideration to joining the Toronto Blue Jays. That made no sense for a variety of reasons.

The $700 million dollar man Shohei Ohtani – Image Credit: Bill Menzel/Latino Sports

LA is far warmer than Toronto most of the year. A flight to Ohtani’s native Japan is five hours shorter from southern California than from Toronto. Finally, as high as California state taxes are, Canadian taxes are even higher and more cumbersome. 

Annual New York Produce Show

The annual New York Produce Show took place last week, and it is clear more imported fruits and vegetables are being imported here, particularly in the winter. Colombia is becoming a major exporter of both blueberries and limes, while Israel is shipping both carrots and dates in record numbers. 

The good news for consumers, according to the panelists I heard, is you get more produce for your dollar from imports. We will see if this has a negative effect on our agriculture industry. So far, it has not. 

Getting kids to eat fruits and vegetables is not a unique American problem. An executive from a British produce marketing firm called Simply Veg, said his organization was able to partner with the entertainment conglomerate, Dreamworks, to use characters from “Kung Fu Panda” to champion the cause of fruits and veggies. He claims the animated character campaign has had beneficial results.

Remembering and Paying Tribute to Norman Lear 

The entertainment world lost a giant with the passing of prolific television producer Norman Lear who died at the age 101 last Tuesday. Lear’s most revolutionary show was “All in the Family” which debuted on CBS in January 1971. The show dealt with real world topics and humor which were unheard of in primetime broadcast network TV back then.

The lead character of “All in the Family,” which was set in Queens, was a bigot named Archie Bunker, who had endearing qualities thanks to the actor who portrayed him, Forest Hills native Carroll O’Connor. 

I had the thrill of meeting Norman Lear in Beverly Hills in 2019 when I was attending the Television Critics Association summer tour. I thanked him for putting Queens on the pop culture map and told him Archie Bunker would not recognize the “world’s borough” given all the construction of the countless high-rise buildings. “You are probably right,” he replied with a smile.

You can read more of Lloyd Carroll’s columns posted weekly on The Queens Chronicle.

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