Here We Go Again: Blue Jays Among 5 "Dark Horses" Named to Pursue Juan Soto

Yes, Juan Soto will be the most sought-after free agent on the market this winter, and yes, the incumbent New York Yankees and the crosstown NY Mets will both be going hard after him. Soto's alma mater, the Washington Nationals, with whom he's already won a World Series, and the San Francisco Giants, who throw around huge money at the biggest free agent every winter, will also take their crack at it.

But in addition to those most likely and most serious suitors, five "dark horse" candidates have been named as well as going hard after the four-time All-Star, and once again, the Toronto Blue Jays will throw their hat in the ring.

RJ Anderson of CBS Sports labels the following five teams as "dark horses" for Soto.

Toronto Blue Jays
Philadelphia Phillies
Chicago Cubs
Boston Red Sox
San Diego Padres

For the Blue Jays, it'll be their second kick at the Soto can, as they made a failed attempt at trying to trade for him last offseason. The team that ultimately dealt him to the Yankees, the San Diego Padres, are deemed another long-shot possibility, as they came much closer to being that serious contender this year that they thought they'd be when they traded for Soto in the first place back in 2022.

The Phillies are on this list because when doesn't President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski take a big swing at the biggest game-changers on the market? The Phils fell far short of their goal of returning to the World Series this year, so they will be serious about making improvements this winter.

The Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox are two teams that are in great need of a superstar hitter to really bolster their offenses, and both are hoping to get back to true contender status in 2025. So they, too, can be expected to sniff around the Soto Sweepstakes.