Boras was 'knee-deep' in Soto contract talks with late Padres owner

Agent Scott Boras said his client Juan Soto would've never ended up on the New York Yankees if not for the death of former San Diego Padres owner Peter Seidler.

"Peter and I were knee-deep in Juan Soto (contract) discussions," Boras said, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today. "Well advanced. His illness really stopped the process because we knew the organization would be different. He wanted to push it through even though he was ill."

The Padres traded the 26-year-old superstar to the Yankees in a seven-player blockbuster three weeks after Seidler died in November 2023.

"That doesn't happen if Peter is alive," Boras added. "Where we were at, Peter would have gotten the deal done. We were very close. Peter was not afraid."

The 71-year-old is convinced Seidler would've never dealt Soto after San Diego acquired the soon-to-be free agent from the Washington Nationals at the 2022 trade deadline in a deal that included MacKenzie Gore, CJ Abrams, and James Wood.

"Peter was not trading Juan Soto," Boras said. "No way. He kept saying, 'I traded for a franchise. I'm not giving him up.' He couldn't believe (the Nationals) traded Juan Soto. He loved Juan."

Soto, who's expected to sign one of the biggest contracts in MLB history when he hits the open market, helped the Yankees reach the World Series this season. Meanwhile, the Padres were eliminated in the NLDS by the Los Angeles Dodgers.