MINNEAPOLIS — Juan Soto is not shutting the door on in-season contract talks, even if there is no guarantee they lead anywhere.
After Hal Steinbrenner said on a YES Network podcast that he would like to see Soto finish his career as a Yankee and that there would likely be conversations with the pending free agent’s camp this season, the star outfielder indicated he would be amenable to such talks.
“My door has always been open,” Soto said Thursday after the Yankees swept the Twins at Target Field. “Whenever he wants to start talking with Scott [Boras] and all those people, they’re always open to hear whatever he has. For me, I just focus on the game right now.”
Boras, Soto’s agent, typically has his clients reach free agency to let the market determine their value, but he echoed Soto in his willingness to speak with Steinbrenner.
“Always happy to talk to Hal,” Boras told The Post’s Joel Sherman. “Juan has a singular focus on winning.”
While some players prefer not to go through negotiations during the season as to avoid distractions, Soto didn’t shoot the idea down.
The pressure of a contract year appears to have had no bearing on his play so far, as he is batting .302 with a .920 OPS and nine home runs, along with quality defense in right field, through 45 games.
It would likely take a massive offer for Soto to agree to a deal before reaching free agency.
Many have already pegged the 25-year-old to earn more than $500 million because of his generational talent and young age.
“If they want to call Scott and start talking about it, it’s up to them,” Soto said. “Scott, they know his phone number and everything. They know where to call. For me right here, I’m focusing on playing baseball.
“My thing is try to help the team to win as much games as we can and try to focus on winning a championship. I think that’s what [Steinbrenner] would want me to do at the end of the day, just focus on playing baseball and try to win games. But if he wants to talk about it, he can call Scott.”
Soto has given a similar response whenever he is asked about the topic, ever since his introductory press conference after the Yankees acquired him in a blockbuster trade in December.
Soto previously turned down a 15-year, $440 million offer from the Nationals in 2022, which led them to trade the outfielder to the Padres that summer.
The Padres also talked about wanting to sign Soto to an extension, though it never came to fruition before they dealt him to the Yankees over the winter.
“It’s really nice to see owners and GMs talking about they want me on their team for life,” Soto said. “But at the end of the day, I’m focusing on this year and what we want to do this year and how much games we want to win and how far we want to go.”
Upon becoming a Yankee, Soto had said he wanted to use this season as a time to get to know the Yankees organization. He reiterated Thursday that it would take a full season to truly get settled in and feel comfortable on a team.
Asked what was different about the Yankees, Soto pointed to their “massive fan base.”
“It’s been pretty nice, it’s been pretty cool,” Soto said of his Yankees experience. “Fan base has been amazing, not only in New York, they’ve been all over every stadium we go. You can hear it. … So the fan base has been unbelievable. New York feels great. It’s a lot of culture, a lot of Hispanic culture and everything. I’ve been feeling good so far and the stadium and clubhouse and everything has been pretty cool.”
