Ten years ago, then Red Sox GM Theo Epstein lost out to the Yankees for Cuban defector Jose Contreras, sending him into a chair-breaking rage.
Epstein, now president of the Cubs, exacted a little revenge on Monday when outfielder Jorge Soler chose Chicago over the Yankees. The Yankees felt the Reds overpaid for Aroldis Chapman and the same with the A’s and Yoesnis Cespedes, and displayed caution, where the Cubs were the most aggressive club and signed him for $30 million.
Soler’s agents wanted bids submitted last Thursday.
The 6-foot-3, 225-pound Soler batted .304 with a .500 on-base percentage and a .522 slugging for Cuba in the 2011 World Junior Baseball Championship in helping his country to the bronze medal.
Soler, a potential five-tool right fielder, defected from the Caribbean country in 2011 and was unlocked by the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control on June 2, finally making him a free agent. If he signs with the Cubs before July 2, he can avoid the new collective bargaining agreement’s financial restrictions.
The Yankees likely viewed Soler as a down-the-line, cheaper replacement for Nick Swisher as they try to stay under the $189 million payroll threshold next season.