MLB offseason buzz: Intel on free agency, trade rumors, more - ESPN

Let the MLB hot stove season begin!

As players become free to sign with any team they choose (free agency officially begins at 5 p.m. ET on Monday), we asked our MLB reporters to open their notebooks with all of the intel they collected from execs, agents and other baseball insiders during the postseason.

What is the latest on Juan Soto's historic free agency? How will the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees approach the offseason after meeting in the World Series? Which other teams are generating the most buzz across the industry? And who could be traded this winter?

Here is what we're hearing as the hot stove ignites.

Jorge Castillo: Re-signing Juan Soto will be far from a slam dunk for the Yankees. Soto said it himself after Game 5 of the World Series: He's going to listen to any and all offers. The Mets are viewed as the Yankees' stiffest challenge for Soto's services, but other teams loom. The Dodgers, Phillies and Blue Jays are expected to at least try. The Nationals would love a reunion. The Giants and Cubs could use a franchise cornerstone. Soto is keeping all doors open. He met every expectation — and then some — in the Bronx, but a return is no guarantee.

Jesse Rogers: Scott Boras will push the Yankees to the financial brink on this one. And there's a good chance that strategy will work considering New York finally found balance in its lineup with him. Here's the bottom line: They need each other. Soto's Hall of Fame track is aided greatly by the dimensions at Yankee Stadium combined with incredible lineup protection with Aaron Judge batting after him. On the team's side, New York is back to square one on offense if it lets him go. Soto will explore the market and give the Yankees a chance to match or